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PREFACE 



HIS BOOK IS PRIMARILY A SOUVENIR OF THE HONORABLE MARTIN BEHRMAN’S TWELFTH 

SARY AS MAYOR OF NEW ORLEANS-TWELVE YEARS OF THE MOST PROGRESSl\ E AND ENLIOH U 
ENED GOVERNMENT THIS CITY HAS EVER EXPERIENCED. MAYOR BEHRMANS THIRD TERM EX 
PI RED DECEMBER 4TH LAST, SO THAT IIE HAS JUST ENTERED UPON HIS FOl R TI E WHICH MILL 
(JIVE HIM AT ITS COMPLETION, SIXTEEN YEARS’ CONSECUTIVE TENURE OF THAT OF! K E. 

SUPPLEMENTAL TO ITS MAIN OBJECT, THIS BOOK EMBODIES A STORY INDICATING IN OUTLINE 
RVPTTFP THAN TN DETAIL THE WONDERFUL DEVELOPMENT OF NEW ORLEANS DURING THIS EVENTFUL PERIOD. 
AGAINST A BACKGROUND OF WELL-AUTHENTICATED FACTS, IS REFLECTED THE REMARKABLE RECORD OF MAYOR 
BEHRMAN^AS A PUBLIC OFFICIAL—HIS COMPREHENSIVE KNOWLEDGE OF EVERY DETAIL OF THE SYSTEM OF 
GOVERNMENT HE HAS BEEN CHOSEN TO ADMINISTER; HIS APPRECIATION OF WHAT IS ESSENTIAL TO THE DEVEL¬ 
OPMENT OF \ GREAT CITY HIS SPLENDID INITIATIVE AND CONSTRUCTIVE ENERGY AND THE CONSPICUOUS PARI 
“ t\kFN PERSONALLY AND OFFICIALLY, IN THE ACTIVITIES WHICH HAVE BROUGHT ABOUT THE EVOLl - 
TTON OF AN OLD CITY FROM MIRE AND FLOOD AND PESTILENCE, TO A SPLENDID MODERN METROPOLIS, POSSESS 

mr E VEBY compobt. every convenience and every attraction of the most advanced community. 

M,T ONI Y DOES THE TEXT PRESENT AN INSTRUCTIVE REVIEW OF NEW ORLEANS IN ALL ITS RELATIONS— 
POI ITII ALLY^ ^O^TALLY, EDUCATIONALLY AND COMMERCIALLY — BUT THE BOOK IS REPLETE WITH A SERIES OF 
PICTURES II IJ STRATIVE OF THE CITY’S MANY INTERESTING AND UNIQUE FEATURES—ITS NOTABLE I UBLIC BP 
ini S INSTITUTIONS OF LEARNING THE GREAT BUSINESS EMPORIUMS, PALATIAL HOMES, LOVELY AVENUES, PAR S 
msSKoTM0IS,Om INCOMPARABLE DRAINAGE, SEWERAGE AND WATER SYSTEMS PUBLIC BELT 
i. n'r i>n vn WHICH IS DOING SO MUCH TO FACILITATE, ECONOMIZE AND EXPEDITE THE HANDLING OF 01 R RAI IDLY 

Commerce !nd other evidences of progress manifest on every hand, with many photo- 

S BOOK 

OF RARE EXCELLENCE. 

OF 1Tg preparation, notwithstanding the numberless perplexities such AN UNDER d 

TAKING NECESSARILY INVOLVES HAS BEEN A PLEASANT ONE, AND WE CAN ONLY WISH THE READER A SIMILAR 
EXPERIENCE IN ITS PERUSAL. 












































































































HON. MARTIN BEHRMAN 



HON. MARTIN BEHRMAN, 
Mayor 1904—1920. 


Mayor 

Cne of the men whose personality has been most impressed on the affairs of the 
C ity of New Orleans for more than a decade, and who, in a great measure, is directly 
responsible for the extensive public improvements made here in the last twelve years, is 
Martin Behrman, who has occupied the Mayor’s chair longer than any other man. 

Elected first in a bitter fight in the fall of 1904; the second time without opposition; 
the third time without difficulty in a fight in which the attacks on him were the chief 
feature. Mayor Behrman was returned to office again at the general election the early 
part of November, 1916, without opposition. 

Such is the remarkable record of the municipal head of New Orleans, who grows 
stronger in public favor, and who has the distinction of giving this city the best business 
administration in the city’s history. Of fine physique, pleasing personality, genial manner 
and graceful bearing, easy of approach and always ready to lend a hearty and efficient 
co-operation in any worthy or commendable enterprise, enjoying a peculiarly secure place 
in the confidence of the public and the well-merited esteem of the whole people, it is not 
difficult to account for Mayor Behrman’s steady climb from near dependence and obscurity 
to a position of security and eminence among his fellowmen, and it is entirely within the 
range of probabilities that this broad-minded, conscientious and able citizen will yet attain 
e\ en greater honors at the hands of the people whose interests he has guarded in so 
eminently satisfactory a manner. 

Moved Here When Less Than Year Old. 

Martin Behrman was born in New York City, October 14, 1864, and has lived in 
New Orleans ever since 1865. His parents, Henry and Fredericks Behrman, moved to 
this city when the Mayor was less than a year old. His father died shortly after his 
arrival here, and his mother survived only until the boy had attained his twelfth year. 
The boy was thrown on his own resources at that tender age. He received his 
education in the public schools of New Orleans. His advantages for this, however, 
were limited, a matter that always caused him sincere regret and which has been a 
leading motive in his remarkable work for the advancement and development of the 
public schools of the city and his interest in the education of all the young people, with 
special care regarding those whose opportunities have been restricted. 

The Mayor began his business career as a clerk in a retail grocery store. Some 
time later, by diligence and enterprise he advanced in the scale of employment to a 
position in a wholesale grocery house, and finally, at the age of 19 years, he became 
tra\ eling representative for the firm of Doyle & Co. He filled that position for two years. 
In the meantime the young salesman had extended his acquaintance and had become 
somewhat popular among men of influence, and ultimately he was appointed clerk of the 
City Council, a position he filled with conspicuous energy and fidelity. 

Subsequently Mr. Behrman was appointed deputy assessor of the Fifth District, 
following which the deputy was advanced to the position of assessor for the district. 



Page 









7 > 


This station was filled in a like satisfactory manner, and the assessor next became 
{.resident of the Board of Asessors for a term of four years. 

Elected Auditor in 1904 and Renamed. 

Mr. Behrman was elected State Auditor in 1904 in the first Statewide primary the 
State ever held, and achieved great popularity as a campaigner in that campaign, in 
which Newton C. Blanchard and General Leon Jastremski were candidates for Governor. 
Soon after his incumbency in the position of Auditor, in which he made a record by 
uncovering dishonesty in several parishes, the city fight for Mayor in New Orleans 
developed, and as there was difficulty in securing a candidate for the regular organization 
to succeed Mayor Paul Capdevielle, Mr. Behrman believed he saw himself as the man 
of the hour and came out as a candidate. He was bitterly fought, ( harles F. Buck being 
the opposing candidate, but was elected by a large majority, and has had no real serious 
opposition for re-election since. 

Mayor Behrman was re-elected to succeed himself in 1908, and again in 1912. In 
November he went to the polls without opposition and was elected for his fourth 
term. He was the last to be elected Mayor under the old convention plan, the first under 
the primary system and is the first Mayor under the Commission Form of City Govern¬ 
ment. 

He was a member of the School Board from 1892 to 1896, inclusive, and for eight 
years was chairman of the Democratic Congressional Committee for the First Con¬ 
gressional District of Louisiana. He was a member of the Constitutional Convention 
cf 1898 when the public improvements were started which have been carried to such 
perfection under his administration. He also served as a delegate-at-large from Louisiana 
to the Democratic National Convention of 1908 and 1912, being chairman of his State 
delegation in 1908. 

As Mayor of New Orleans, Mr. Behrman has had many difficult problems to handle, 
one of the most important being the task of securing funds to provide for the subsurface 
drainage, build schools and engine houses, pave streets, establish playgrounds and im¬ 
prove parks, all of which have been done with remarkable success. Mayor Behrman has 
had serious opposition to face in many of these matters, but has been supported by a 
large majority of the people whenever it came to a point where there was a vote of the 
people. 

Mayor Head of Many Boards. 

The Mayor is the head of the Sewerage and Water Board and the Public Belt Rail¬ 
road. He threw up the first spade of earth for the Public Belt, and has been its cham¬ 
pion and promoter from the very first against strenuous opposition from those who 
thought the railroads should control all switching and transportation matters. As a 
result of the interest shown by Mayor Behrman the city has a splendid asset in this great 
public utility, which is one of the finest belt railroads in the world and one of the few 
owned by the city in which it operates. 

Mayor Behrman. by reason of the office he holds, is also a member of the Orleans 
I.evee Board and has had an active part in the clearing away of the old buildings along 
the city front and the construction of the great levees that now so securely protect the 
city. 


One of the accomplishments of plan." tZ 

has been frequently complm-ente l * ™ ^ inclmHng a sea wall, public gardens and 

n~^rz:™ts, which ^en fully ^"^bu^^ m^ 

nr orleans 

Railway and Light Company in consideration of their Spanish Fort franchise. 

Leader in Exposition Campaign Here. 

Mayor Behrman was the leader in the strenuous campaign a few years ago to 
secure recognition from the United States government to celebrate the opening of 
Panama Canal by the holding of a great international exposition at New Orleans. Mayor 
Behrn an traveled extensively over the country in the interest of New Orleans an e 
fight that was being made, and frequently went to Washington with special committ 
making the fight for this city, and with the Louisiana delegation. Though New Orleans 
was not successful in her efforts, the Mayor and those connected with him in the wonder¬ 
ful exposition fight secured for the city some valuable publicity which has since resulted 
in beneficial advertising of the city as a great seaport, a growing financial and com¬ 
mercial center and the principal point of concentration of the great tanning and agri¬ 
cultural interests contiguous to the city. 

Acting in his capacity of Mayor of New Orleans, Mr. Behrman welcomed to the 
city many big men and high public officials, among them Theodore Roosevelt and William 
Howard Taft, both of whom came South in their respective terms as President of the 
United States. The Mayor has met the latter two frequently, and formed friendships 
with them as well as with all public men who have visited the city during his adminis¬ 
tration. 

Deep Interest in Every Movement. 

Mayor Behrman takes a deep personal interest in the commercial development of 
New Orleans. He joined the Merchants and Manufacturers’ Bureau some years ago, and 
annually makes the week trade trip successfully conducted by the management of that 
organization under the able direction of Allen H. Borden. The Mayor is also a member 
of the Association of Commerce and has been active in assisting that body in its efforts 
to induce newcomers in the industrial and manufacturing field. He has been active in 
the efforts to secure the improvements of the Mississippi River. Mayor Behrman has 
always been generous in helping all w'orthv charities and public interests. 

The Mayor is an active and popular member of New Orleans Lodge No. 30, Benevo¬ 
lent and Protective Order of Elks, the New Orleans Press Club, the Knights of Columbus, 
Woodmen of the World, Benevolent Knights of America, Ancient Order of Druids, Young 
Men’s Social and Benevolent Association, Southern Yacht Club, Young Men’s Gymnastic 
Club, Loyal Order of Moose, the French Opera Club, the Choctaw' Club, Travelers’ Pro¬ 
tective Association, the Jovian Order, Rotarians, Surf Club, Chess, Checkers and Whist 
Club, Lakeshore Club and numerous other fraternal and social organizations. 

In 1887 Mayor Behrman was married to Miss Julia Collins, of Cincinnati. Two 
children were born to that union, one son, Stanley W. Behrman. and Miss Mary Helen 
Behrman. 


a 


Page Six 



Page Seven 




































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ADOLPH GUSTAVE RICKS, 

Commissioner of Public Finance. 

Commissioner of Public Finance A. G. Ricks was born 
in Hamburg, Germany, in 1842, and came to this country 
at the age of nine years. He was educated in the public 
and private schools of New Orleans and Paris, Texas. He 
served in the Fifteenth Confederate Cavalry during the 
Civil War. He started his business career as clerk in the 
retail grocery business, and afterwards entered-the leather 
business as a member of the firm of John Frank & Co. Ten 
years later he acquired the entire business and established 
the firm of A. G. Ricks & Co., which is now incorporated 
and managed by his son, Robert B. Ricks. 

In 1895 Mr. Ricks was appointed received of the New 
Orleans Brewing Association, which he managed for four 
years. 

In 1901 he was elected President of the Metropolitan 
Bank. * 

In 1912, on the adoption of the Commission Form of Gov¬ 
ernment, he was elected Commissioner of Public Finance, 
and re-elected in 1916. 

As Treasurer of the School Retirement Fund, Mr. Ricks 
has consistently refused his salary of $1,500 and turned it 
into the Teachers’ Fund. 


E. E. LAFAYE, 

Commissioner of Public Property. 

Edward E. Lafaye was born in New Orleans in 1880. He 
attended the public schools from 1887 to 1894. In the latter 
year he became connected with the wholesale grocery in¬ 
terest in this city, and when selected for the position of 
Commissioner of Public Property, to which he was elected 
in 1912, Mr. Lafaye held a most responsible position with 
the firm of Albert Mackie & Co. He resigned his position 
there in 1913 so that he could give his entire time to the 
duties required of his office in the City Hall. 

When first elected to the office, Mr. Lafaye made a per¬ 
sonal investigation of the needs of the city in so far as 
street paving is concerned, and, as a direct result of this 
activity, the property holders have been saved thousands 
and thousands of dollars. Not only has Mr. Lafaye done 
this for the taxpayers direct, but he has also saved the city 
itself many thousands of dollars by introducing a perfect 
system of operation of the municipal repair plant, where 
he has been successful in reducing the cost of repair work 
almost one-third the price paid by the city before Mr. 
Lafaye assumed direction of the city’s repair plant. 

Mr. Lafaye is a member of the Chess, Checkers and Whist 
Club, the Southern Yacht Club, the Association of Com¬ 
merce and the Motor League of Louisiana. 


EDWARD J. GLENNY, 

Commissioner of Public Utilities. 

As a citizen and publie official, no man has a higher 
standing than Edward J. Glenny, Commissioner in charge 
of the Department of Public Utilities of New Orleans. He 
was recently chosen for this high office, having been 
selected as the successor to Hon. W. B. Thompson, the 
present president of the Board of Port Commissioners, but 
since his incumbency Mr. Glenny has demonstrated to the 
satisfaction of his legion of friends that he is the man for 
the office and that the interests of the public will never 
suffer under his keeping. Commissioner Glenny is the head 
of the Board of Public Utilities, and one of his first accom¬ 
plishments was the bringing about of an investigation of 
the transportation service of the New Orleans Railway & 
Light Company by an expert on transportation problems 
from St. Louis. This will be the means of the ad¬ 
dition of some $500,000 in equipment to the street railway 
service and the straightening out of the lines of the system 
for the better conservation of its operating facilities. Mr. 
Glenny was for many years one of the leading cotton mer¬ 
chants of the city, and was twice selected as the President 
of the New Orleans Cotton Exchange. He is prominently 
connected, and has for many years been a leader in social 
upilft and philanthropic work. 


Page Eight 














Page Nine 


SAM STONE, JR., 

Commissioner of Public Safety. 

Exercising the difficult duties of the office of Commis¬ 
sioner of Public Safety is a college man and an architect 
and constructing engineer, Samuel Stone, Jr., who suc¬ 
ceeded Harold W. Newman, who resigned June 19, 1917. 

Mr. Stone has charge of the administration of the 
police power of New Orleans, and has in his charge the 
erecutive and supervisory functions of the police and de¬ 
tective forces of the city, as well as the carrying out of all 
ordinances pertaining to social hygiene and the moral wel¬ 
fare of the community. This office is his first public posi¬ 
tion, and he was selected for it by Mayor Behrman and the 
other Commissioners of the City Government because of 
his eminent fitness in other positions requiring executive 
ability and the handling of men. The selection had the 
unanimous endorsement of the business leaders of New 
Orleans, and has resulted in the carrying out of the policy 
of Mayor Behrman to make New Orleans one of the cleanest 
and least parasitic-ridden municipalities of the nation. Com¬ 
missioner Stone is carrying out these policies rigidly, but 
in a manner which shows his diplomatic bearing and fitness 
for his difficult duties. He has recently been instrumental 
in assisting in the reorganization of the police force, thus 
adding greatlv to its efficiency and improving its personnel. 


HAROLD W. NEWMAN, 

Commissioner of Public Safety (Resigned June 19, 1917). 

Harold W. Newman is a native of New Orleans. He was 
born October 2, 1872. Mr. Newman received his early edu¬ 
cation in the public schools of this city and later attended 
the old Jefferson Academy. He was graduated from Tulane 
University in 1892 with the degree of A. B. In 1894 Mr. 
Newman was graduated from the law department of Tulane 
University. He immediately entered the practice of law, 
following the profession until 1906. 

In 1906, owing to the failing health of his father, Mr. 
Newman joined the firm of M. W. Newman & Son. 

Mr. Newman was elected Commissioner of Public Safety 
in 1912, and was re-elected in 1916. The high state of effi¬ 
ciency of both the police and fire departments is due to his 
untiring efforts. He is also responsible for the excellent 
traffic regulations in force here, which he inaugurated upon 
coming into office. 

Commissioner Newman has earned a national reputation 
as an authority on Safety First regulations, being the first 
vice president of the Safety First Federation of America. 

Commissioner Newman married Miss Bellahie Israel in 
1898, and as the fruit of his marriage has three sons. 







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EDIEVAL TOWNS GREW UP around shrines and monasteries built at 
the graves of the early martyrs; others around fortifications or in the 
shadow of the castles of the feudal lords, while in our day they were 
founded by men who were noted traders. The most common origin of 
American cities was the primitive agricultural village, or a coalescence 
of several villages. Facilities for trade were the main incentive to 
the development of the village, the community and the town, and these, 
situated at fording places or on great rivers, connecting with the sea, 
and in the midst of a fertile region of country, or on good trade 
routes, were favored in growth and regarded as the more desirable locations for 
cities. Just what was in Bienville’s mind when he founded New Orleans in 1718 
is not apparent, but that he builded better than he knew is to-day ad¬ 
mitted in the fact that the little community with its parallelogram or streets and 
ditches, laid out on a crescent-shaped shore in the midst of cypress swamps and willow 
jungles, is now one of the most beautiful and prosperous cities on this continent. Its 
selection, however, is perhaps best accounted for upon the hypothesis that whenever 
a country has become sufficiently advanced in civilization to develop among its in¬ 
habitants a considerable traffic in the products of their industries portions of its 
population will tend to mass in convenient centers of distribution and exchange. Par¬ 
ticularly is this true when this traffic, through most favorable circumstances, promised 
an extensive and profitable development not only among the inhabitants of the same 
country, but between them and the people of other countries. 

And these were the circumstances existing here when the far-seeing Frenchman 
made his choice of a capital for the territory of Louisiana, and which probably exerted 
the determining influence in locating, regardless of certain adverse conditions of an 
apparently insuperable character, a great city on the present site of New Orleans. 
Although the date of its birth goes back into the eighteenth century, New Orleans may 
now be truly said to be a product of the nineteenth century—a by-product of steam, 
electricity and transportation. 

It is situated on the eastern, or, more correctly speaking, on the northern bank 
of the Father of Waters, which at this point, after running northward for several miles, 
takes a turn to the eastward. Originally built in the form of a crescent, around a bend 
in the river, it now extends so far upstream that its shoreline takes the form of the 
letter S. In a most direct line it is distant from New York 1342 miles, south of Chicago 
S30 miles, 718 miles south of St. Louis, 1117 miles southwest of Washington, 106 miles 
from the mouth of the Mississippi River, and 1395 miles from the Panama Canal, being 
the nearest of all the ports of this country to that famous connecting link between the 
Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The geological history of the site upon which New 
Orleans is built is interesting. This alluvial strata is made land, having been brought 
down from the Rocky Mountains and the Western plains by that most eccentric of 
rivers, the Mississippi, which building up, little by little, has filled up old channels, and 
in doing so wearing itself new ones, until finally it has extended its delta like an out¬ 
stretched hand far out into the waters of the Mexican Gulf. 

The Mississippi has a history no less of romance than of fact. Students recall 
with delight French and Spanish adventures in their interesting search for the “Hidden 
River,” that mysterious stream, which, according to the Indian tradition, “flowed from 


the land from which the sweet winds of the Southwest brought them health and happi¬ 
ness, where there was neither ice nor snow, which was known by so many different 
names,” and ending with the construction of the jetties which to-day have gnen depth 
and permanence to its delta and made New Orleans one of the great ports of the 
world. The beautiful Lake Pontchartrain forms the northern boundary of the city. 
In area New Orleans has 196^4. square miles, and in this respect probably is larger than 
any other city in the country, except, perhaps, New 1 ork, Philadelphia and Chicago. 
The incline is in the direction of Lake Pontchartrain, which is six miles distant to 
the northward. It may be interesting to know that portions of the city are twenty feet 
lower than the high-water level of the river. Several areas of the city, of considerable 
size, are as much as one foot below the mean gulf level; but the city generally is from 
two to four feet above. There no longer exists the least apprehension of inundation 
from either the river or the lake, ample protection being afforded through a system of 
levees from 12 to 16 feet high, which completely encircle the town. The streets are 
drained into canals, from which the water is lifted by means of steam pumps, forming 
an integral part of probably the most modern and efficient system of drainage in this 
or any country. The water thus handled, some of it as many as four times before 
discharge, is carried into Lake Pontchartrain, which, however, is only a temporary 
arrangement, the purpose ultimately being to discharge into Lake Borgne, some 13 miles 
below the city. 

The main streets describe a curve, running parallel to the river, and at present 
form an unbroken line from the upper to the lower limits of the city, a distance of 
12 miles. The cross streets run at right angles from the Mississippi River, with greater 
regularity than might be expected, considering the curved outlines of the river bend. 

Here the French Creoles were born, and lived a wild, valorous and unrestrained 
life. For sixty-three years the little colony struggled for existence, enduring floods, 
famines, pestilence and the terrors of Indian warfare, when in 1762 the province of 
Louisiana was transferred by France to Spain. The first Spanish Governor was Ulloa, 
who was inclined to adopt a conciliatory policy, but the people made the town so 
disagreeable for him that in less than two years he returned to Spain. Geo. W. Cable 
gives the causes for Ulloa’s unpopularity with the people of the town as follows: “That 
he had a chapel in his house; that he absented himself from the French churches; that 
he enclosed a fourth of the public common to pasture his private horses; that he sent to 
Havana for a wet nurse; that he ordered the abandonment of a brickyard near the 
town on account of its pool of putrid water; that he removed leperous children from 
the town to the inhospitable settlement at the mouth of the river; that he forbid the 
public whipping of slaves in the town; that masters had to go six miles to get negroes 
flogged; that he had landed in New Orleans during a thunder and rain storm, and under 
olher ill-omens; that he offended the people with evidences of sordid avarice, and that 
he added to these ‘crimes’ many others equally unjust and terrible.” The colony in 
1769, when New Orleans was a town of 3,200 inhabitants, was in open revolt, but the 
arrival of a Spanish fleet checked the aspirations of the patriots, paralyzed their efforts, 
and they yielded without a struggle. 

In 1803 Louisiana was retransferred by Spain to France, and great was the re¬ 
joicing of the Creole colonists, who during the forty years of Spanish domination had 
never forgotten their French origin. But their joy was quickly turned to bitterness 


Page Ten 







JOHN P. COLEMAN, 
Secretary to Mayor Behrman. 



Mr. Coleman was born in Vicksburg, Miss., September 13, 
1854. He attended the elementary schools in Vicksburg 
and Natchez and spent five years at St. Vincent’s College, 
Cape Girardeau, Mo. He was admitted to the bar in Missis¬ 
sippi in 1875, but never practiced the profession, engaging 
in the newspaper business soon thereafter. He came to 
New Orleans in 1882, and has resided here continuously 
since, being connected for many years with the Times- 
Democrat and for a time with the Daily States. He became 
Secretary to Mayor Behrman in 1911. 



GEORGE FERRIER, 

Clerk of the Commission Council. 

Few officials of the Behrman Administration can boast 
of the number of friends among all classes of business and 
professional men as can George Ferrier, the efficient and 
obliging clerk of the Commission Council and an attache 
of the City Hall in a clerical capacity for the past seventeen 
years. Mr. Ferrier is noted for his courteous bearing and 
pleasant manner and his promptness in the looking up of 
official business for visitors and business men has won 
him popularity which has been of material aid in the success 
of the administrations of the Mayor and Commission Coun¬ 
cil. Mr. Ferrier is a native of New Orleans and of dis¬ 
tinguished family, his grandfather having been a man of 
much wealth and prominence in the ante-bellum days of 
the vieux carre. He entered the city’s service seventeen 
years ago as Assistant Clerk of the City Council. After 
eight years of that service he was rewarded by election as 
Chief Clerk. Mr. Ferrier has a wide knowledge of city 
affairs and is probably the best-posted man on city ordi¬ 
nances and customs in the South. 


MICHAEL ROONEY, 

Chief Clerk to Mayor Behrman. 

No man in the city is more widely known than is Mike 
Rooney, Chief Clerk to Mayor Behrman and one of the 
most able aids to the administration. Mr. Rooney has the 
difficult task of receiving visitors to the Mayor’s parlor 
and attending to the wants of those who seek permits and 
other matters pertaining to the routine of the city’s execu¬ 
tive. He is a New Orleans product, born in Algiers, the 
west-side suburb of the Crescent City, and has for a num¬ 
ber of years been in public life. Mr. Rooney, through the 
administration of his office has done much to promote the 
success of the four administrations of His Honor, and has 
made numerous friends in all parts of the city through his 
courteous treatment of visitors and his uniform considera¬ 
tion of the needy when appeals are made for charity funds. 


Page Eleven 





when the news was received shortly after that Louisiana had been sold by Napoleon 
to the United States. The younger generation and those who had a clear apprehension 
of what this change would bring about in the way of material advancement and in other 
respects were quickly reconciled to the new conditions, pledging their fealty to the 
American government with an alacrity and earnestness that left no ground for distrust. 
And the prosperity of the city dated from that eventful period. In 1804 New Orleans 
was incorporated, at which time it had a population of approximately 8,000. In 1S12 
the use of steam in its application to navigation of the Mississippi was introduced, 
though it was not until several years later that, succeeding a period of experiment and 
disaster, a far speedier, more reliable and generally satisfactory system of river trans¬ 
portation through the instrumentality of water craft operated by steam was attained. 
Previous to this, canoes, batteaux and flatboats were utilized in making the voy age 
down the Mississippi and its tributaries. These vessels were laden with the products 
and commodities from the sections from whence they came, but to return against the 
current was almost impossible; so that a trip from St. I.ouis to New Orleans or Louisville 
New Orleans and return required months. 

January the 8th, 1815, New Orleans was successfully defended against the British 
by General Jackson, who, with a force of less than 6,000, defeated 15,000 picked men 
of the British Army under Sir Edward Packenham, the enemy sustaining a loss of 700 
killed, 1,400 wounded and 500 taken prisoners, while the American loss was only seven 
killed and six wounded. The old battlefield is still retained as a historic spot. It is 
four and one-half miles from Canal Street, on the banks of the Mississippi, and extends 
about a mile to the rear, in the direction of Lake Pontcliartrain. A marble monument, 
which was to have been 70 feet in height, but now in a hopelessly unfinished state, is 
commemorative of this matchless victory; and in the southwest corner of this famous 
field is the National Cemetery, one of the most beautiful of the many beautiful resting 
places of the Federal dead in this country. 

New Orleans still bears the impress of the nations to which at different times in 
its romantic history it has borne allegiance. Many of its streets yet retain their old 
French and Spanish names, and there are here and there sandwiched in between struc¬ 
tures of a later generation many quaint and picturesque buildings. Others are of massive 
stone or brick edifices with great arched doors, paved floors, worn by the feet of genera 
tions long passed. That part of the city below Canal Street suggests the life of mediaeval 
Louisiana. The old buildings and narrow, cobblestone streets constitute a monument 
of the past, and, like the ancient town of Rothenberg, should be as carefully preserved 
as are the art treasures of the country’s museums. And in this connection it might be 
well to Sav it has been the aim of Mayor Behrman, while encouraging industry and 
development in every direction, not to permit industry' to disfigure the city or in any way 
diminish that peculiar charm for which it is famous the world over. 

As would be supposed, the population of New Orleans is cosmopolitan, aggregated 
from manv nationalities, each of the several elements having in a measure its own ideas 
of social and religious proclivities and its own civilization. But there never has been 
an attempt to make a Procustean bed, to which all should be forced to fit, the different 
elements themselves rapidly assimilating and becoming a homogeneous mass with all 
the ideals of their new environment. 

It has been said the atmosphere of New Orleans is Bohemian—its language 
polyglot. Certainly it is venerable with age and rich in accumulations of a long-realized 
maturity. Jackson Square has an historic interest, it having been the old Place d’Armes 
of Colonial times. It was here that Ulloa landed in that ill-omened thunderstorm, and 
here that public meetings were held and the colony’s small armies mobilized. During 
the Indian wars, barracks were constructed on either side of Place d’Armes, where the 
Pontalba buildings now stand, and in 1758 other buildings of a similar character were 


added, and part o, whoae ruin s,.„ stands ££ TkU 

Jackson Senate is .1,, site of the oldest C. uchu^ „ „ thl , wrItin8 

building was long used for the purposes ot t collected one of the most inter- 

the property of the Louisiana State Museum, in which is collected one 

esting varied and valuable exhibits in the country. 

Steaming down ^ Se EiSVX rfner 

r,e7: e e z — T r 

right-angled turns, when coming around the third point, m advance of it, it sa 
French ship, armed and chipped, and hearing down (he stream ander fulJ aih The 
English ship was given to understand that the Mississippi was no thoroughfare for 
vessels o, «s nationality, and was commanded to return and retrace its course, which 

it reluctantly, but no less surely did.’ Hence the name English urn. 

New Orleans had a population in 1820 of 27,000; in 1850 it had increased to 11637a, 
and in 1860 it had reached 168,675. In common with other cities of the Sout ’ ^ e 
Orleans was a great sufferer by the Civil War, during which not only was lts b " 81 “ 8 ® 
interests paralyzed, its port blockaded, .its homes looted and laid waste and leading 
men impoverished, but it had sustained through the patriotism of its gallant sons ti 
irreparable loss of many a promising youth who had gone forth to battle in defense of 
his State and people. Then followed the horrors of the reconstruction period, which, 
with all its demoralizing and harmful influences, tended to prolong and intensify the 
bitterness and the unsettled conditions which had their inception in the great war. 
Nevertheless, in 1870, the population of New Orleans had increased to 191,418, and in 
1874 the value of its exports, including rice, flour, pork, tobacco, sugar, etc., but excepting 
cotton, were estimated at $93,715,710. Its imports in the same year were valued at 
considerably over $14,000,000. To-day it has a population of nearly 400,000. Its exports, 
which amounted to only $146,277,839.00 in 1904, when Mayor Behrman first came into 
office, have increased to $263,376,337.00, and its imports from $ 34 , 035 , 516.00 to 
$92,103,939.00. It is the chief cotton mart of the world, and its wharves are lined with 
ships which bear this and other commodities to every quarter of the globe. In the 
amount and volume of its exports it ranks second to New York. 

Having triumphed over adversity, we are now called upon to bear the test of 
success. A large part of the city was, up to a few years ago, inaccessible and of no 
value whatsoever, because of inadequate means of transit and inability to use the 
undeveloped territory lying between the city proper and Lake Pontchartrain. Nearly 
all this vast tract of land has now been reclaimed through drainage, of which a large 
part is being rapidly developed into residence districts, and the remainder under profit¬ 
able cultivation, blossoms as the rose. With the extension of the street railroad system 
into those sections, every facility is provided for their improvement, which is not only 
systematically carried on, but is rapid and of a most attractive and permanent character. 
In this respect attractiveness is treated as a commercial asset and desirable as a means 
for promoting the city’s growth. The city is a conscious, living thing, with a life of 
its own and a definite mission to perform. In its planning is involved the construction 
of a water system, drainage and sewerage, steam and street railroad transportation to 
reduce the cost of transit and loss of time to a minimum. It means the building of 
terminals to facilitate trade and industry. Street railways, gas, electric light and water 
are regarded as the city’s vital organs to be owned and operated for service, comfort and 
convenience. The task that has in a great measure fallen to Mayor Behrman has been 
the creation of a new city out of an old one—a city that during the larger part of its 
existence has possessed but few of the essentials of a great modern metropolis. What 




JUDGE ISAIAH D. MOORE. 

City Attorney. 

Prominent as an attorney, councilor and 
jurist, Judge Isaiah D. Moore, the City At¬ 
torney of New Orleans, holds a high position 
on the Louisiana Bar Association. For the 
past nine years he has been the City At¬ 
torney of the Crescent City, having been ap¬ 
pointed to that post on the retirement of the 
late Hon. Samuel L. Gilmore, who retired to 
become Congressman from the Second Louis¬ 
iana District. Prior to that time Judge Moore 
had been an Associate Justice of the Louis¬ 
iana State Court of Appeals, a position which 
he filled for some twelve years with honor 
and credit to himself and the State. As the 
City Attorney Judge Moore is constantly 
calied upon to be the legal advisor of His 
Honor Mayor Behrman and the Commission 
Council, and much of the progress of the 
administrations of the city since 1908 has 
been due to his astute handling of the prob¬ 
lems which have arisen. Judge Moore has 
an eye single to the public interest, and is 
an energetic worker for the development ot 

the city. 


WILLIAM P. BALL, 

City Auditor. 

Among the many attaches of the city ad¬ 
ministration there is none who stands higher 
in the public favor than does William P. Ball, 
the City Auditor. Mr. Ball started his career 
as a newspaper man and made hosts of 
friends through his uniform diplomacy of 


bearing. He was selected as the private sec¬ 
retary of Mayor Behrman when the Execu¬ 
tive commenced his first administration in 
1904, and for eight years exercised those 
difficult duties with great success. As a re¬ 
ward for his success he was made the Reg¬ 
istrar of Voters by Governor .1. Y. Sanders, a 
position held by him until the appointment 
of his successor by Governor Luther E. Hall. 
On leaving the registrarship he was made 
the City Auditor by the Hon. A. G. Hicks, 
Commissioner of Public Finance, and on the 
re-election of that official was reappointed 
to this office. Mr. Ball enjoys the esteem and 
respect of all classes of Orleanians and is a 
capable official. 


FERNAND J. WHITE, 

Deputy Commissioner of Finance, Accounting 
Division. 

Among the public officials to whose efforts 
is due the success of the Commission Form 
of Government in New Orleans none deserves 
greater credit than Mr. Fernand J. White, 
Deputy Commissioner of Finance in the Ac¬ 
counting Division. His familiarity with the 
best methods of municipal accounting, ac¬ 
quired through long practical experience 
eminently fits him for his present position at 
the head of one of the most important de¬ 
partments of the city administration. 

Mr. White was born in New Orleans May 
10, 1862, and received his education in the 


A. J. O’KEEFE, 

Deputy Commissioner of Finance, Treasury 
Division. 

Arthur J. O’Keefe, Deputy Commissioner of 
the Department of Public Finance, elected to 
that office by the Commission Council in 
1912, occupies a most prominent position in 
the affairs of New Orleans. 

Mr. O’Keefe has taken an active part in 
politics for many years, being a member of 
the Democratic or regular organization of 
the Tenth Ward, where he enjoys the confi¬ 
dence and esteem of a large constituency. 
Member of Democratic Parish Committee 12 
years, re-elected in September for four years, 
this being his fourth term. 

In April, 1908, Mr. O’Keefe was elected a 
member of the State Senate from the Fifth 
Senatorial District, and in 1909 he was 
elected a member of the City Council, serv¬ 
ing under the old form of government. When 
the Commission Council went into office, Mr. 
O’Keefe was elected Deputy Commissioner 
of Finance, serving under Commissioner 
Ricks. He was returned to that office for 
another term of four years, following the last 
election. 


local schools. He began his business career 
at a very early age, and his ability soon 
brought him deserved recognition. He has 
always been prominently identified with 
every movement looking toward the better¬ 
ment of conditions, and every form of civic 
progress and improvement has always found 
him a staunch and able supporter. 


Page Thirteen 










progress it has made in this direction and how thoroughly and intelligently the Mayor 
is discharging his obligations in this regard must be apparent to all, but especially so 
to the visitor who is able to compare present conditions with conditions existing here 
some twelve years ago. With the remarkable evolution in the physical development of 
Xew Orleans during the past decade—in sewerage, water and drainage, in modern 
wharves, warehouses, elevators, belt railroad, in industrial and commercial activities, 
in the changes wrought by electricity in transportation, and in the multiplication of 
human hands through the more efficient harnessing of power — there have come, also, 
a higher standard of education, increased culture, love of the fine arts, the unique and 
beautiful in architecture, the extension and improvement of our park system, the estab¬ 
lishment and equipment of playgrounds and public baths, the solution of problems of 
sanitation and health and a growing spirit of philanthropy manifesting itself in numerous 
princely gifts to charity. 

The power of public opinion supported by timely legislation, advocated and put 
into successful operation through the influence of Mayor Behrman, has achieved much 
in the way of regulating and improving the condition of factory employees. There was 
a time not so long ago when factories and large commercial establishments throughout 
ll'.e country were literally the consumers of women and children, producing a mentally 
morallv and physically imperfect class of the community, which, if not effectively and 
promptly checked, threatened, in the near future, to be attended with serious conse¬ 
quences. The evils and abuses for the eiadication of which the law r referred to was 
passed by our Legislature have been greatly mitigated, if not wholly abated here in 
Xew Orleans through the intelligent, practical and conservative administration of fac¬ 
tory inspecfion by Mrs. Martha D. Gould almost since the inception of that office. 

The transcendant importance of rapid transit as a solution not only for the over¬ 
crowding of the city proper, but for the development of the suburbs, is generally recog¬ 
nized. Its success, of course, depends not alone upon the provisions made for an ade¬ 
quate service, but upon the rates of fare, on a cheap basis, that renders the service 
available to the poorer classes. Since Mayor Behrman’s incumbency and through his 
untiring efforts, several important concessions have been made by the Railways Com¬ 
pany in the way of reduced fares on its lines, and in facilities and comforts in instances 
where the service had hitherto been either inadequate or below the standard. As it is, 
the street railway service in New Orleans will compare favorably with any like system 
in the country. 

This city has a record of 200 years of hospitality for which it does not have to 
apologize—200 years during which it has not closed its gates to man or beast seeking 
shelter, refreshment or entertainment. The city, as has been said, is rich in tradition, 
has a wealth of historic association; flow’ers, foliage, perennial, fragrant and beautiful; 
not oppressive in the warmth of its sunlight, its climate is salubrious and inviting the 
year around. To the student of history and romance. New Orleans offers a rare field. 
In the part of the city below Canal Street there is not a square that does not possess 
some landmark replete with tradition and aglow with the spirit of historical color. Here 
and here alone one will find the Carnival spirit, manifesting itself annually in a series 
of superb pageants, brilliant, artistic and instructive, besides which are the individual 
maskers, the strolling troubadours, streets blazing with incandescent beauty and the 
thousands of eager spectators, representing the wealth, beauty and fashion of every 
clime, who have come miles and miles to witness the wonders of this modern genii. 
When the glories of the Mardi Gras have faded away, the crowds disperse delighted 
with what they have seen and convinced that, while there may be other cities, there is 
but one New' Orleans. 

The welfare of a city embraces, among other important essentials, the protection 
of the life, health and property of its inhabitants. This protection is afforded bv the 


police department, which includes various courts and correctional institutions; the fire 
department and the department of health and sanitation. In all these branches of 
government New Orleans has made very great progress in the past twelve years. Not 
only has their efficiency been materially increased, but the forces employed in their 
respective departments have been strengthened in membership, in discipline and expert 
training, with increased facilities for a more thorough discharge of their important 
duties. In the fire department the men and apparatus are better housed and enjoy con¬ 
veniences and comforts never dreamed of under the old regime. Much attention has 
been given to a more humane consideration of the dependent and delinquent classes, 
and a generous provision made for our hospital for mental diseases and other institutions 
for the relief of the indigent. There are numerous benevolent and eleemosynary insti¬ 
tutions in New Orleans, many fine hospitals, sanitariums, asylums, training schools, etc., 
and an incalculable amount of good is being effected through their instrumentality. No 
city in the country is supplied, proportionately to its population, with a larger number 
of handsome places of worship than New Orleans; there is no sect or creed that is not 
represented in the total, and no one, no matter what his faith, is deprived of religious 
consolation should he seek it here. The clubs, of which there are many, are a distinct 
feature of our social life—prosperous, hospitable and homogeneous in character. Cur 
cemeteries are unique, and some of them very beautiful — notably Metairie, which is 
admittedly one of the loveliest resting places of the dead in the United States, or any¬ 
where. 

There are many delightful trips out of New Orleans—across the lake, up the 
romantic and beautiful Tchefuneta River, over on the coast, out through the fertile sec¬ 
tions intersected by the railroads, up and down the Mississippi, and in the lovely Tec.he 
country, in the regions where the sugar cane and cotton grow, out and around the most 
beautiful and historic homes in the whole Southland. 

Our public school curriculum is comparable to that of any other city in the coun¬ 
try, and this improvement has been especially in evidence during the three administra¬ 
tions of Mayor Behrman. Appropriations for school buildings, for equipment, for school 
books, gymnasiums, playgrounds, kindergartens, for the promotion of school hygiene, 
etc., have kept pace with the city’s ability to finance these essentials of the modern 
educational system. The newer school buildings, impressive-looking structures, are, 
liberally provided with conveniences and comforts, comparing favorably with the finest 
institutions of that kind, ,and are, indeed, monuments to him w'ho has for years been 
known as “The School Mayor of New Orleans.” 

COMMISSION GOVERNMENT. 

The commission plan, which has been adopted by many cities of this country, is 
in many respects a radical departure from traditional forms of municipal government 

ZZ™ rrr the PraCtiCal ° Perati ° n of system was limited to cities of less than 
300,000 inhabitants. New Orleans was the first city exceeding this limit to put into 

operation this system, with Buffalo a close second. A commission of five representative 
citizens, including the Mayor, represents the whole city, the term of office of the mem- 
ers being tour years. Under its provisions all distinctions between legislative and 

n r^r^r inated :. Each member ° f the *■ -,^,0 

a department subject to supervision by other members, and the whole is remarkably 
flexible, expeditious, economical and efficient. It can remove at win remarkably 

subordinate officers, fix salaries, write the annual budg^Tdp^lbe “ " 

The Mayor, as stated, is a member of the Commission an 1 -a 
vith the right to vote. He is the Chief Executive of the city“nd has s!" 8e88iOD8 ’ 

over its administration. The system affords greater facility T tl SUperV1SOry power 

important work, places the responsibility where it properly beio* aCCompllshment of 
holders on their mettle. ' belongs and puts office- 



W. J. HARDEE, 

City Engineer. 

Captain Hardee was born in Brandon, Miss., March 27, 
1863. He came to New Orleans at quite an early age and 
attended the public schools of this city. Subsequently he 
attended St. Stanislaus College, at Bay St. Louis, Miss. He 
began his professional career in 1880, when he engaged in 
the location and construction of the New Orleans Pacific 
Railroad, now the Texas & Pacific. 

Prom 1886 to 1890, Captain Hardee was Assistant United 
States Engineer, making hydrographic and topographic sur¬ 
veys of the Mississippi River between Vicksburg and the 
mouth of the river. From 1890 to 1900 Captain Hardee was 
Assistant United States Engineer in charge of the location, 
construction and maintenance of all the Federal levees on 
the Mississippi River between Vicksburg and the mouth of 
the river. 

On July 9, 1898, President McKinley commissioned Mr 
Hardee Captain of Company F, Third Regiment, United 
States Volunteer Engineers. He served with his regiment 
in the United States and in Cuba until it was mustered out 
at Fort McPherson, Ga„ on May 17, 1899. 

In November, 1899, at the general election, Captain Hardee 
was elected City Engineer, and has held that office con¬ 
tinuously ever since. 


E. A. CHRISTY, 


City Architect. 


Edgar A. Christy, City Architect, is a gentleman of lofty 
ideals, and is happily endowed with an intellectuality to 
successfully carry out those ideals. Mr. Christy’s experience 
has made him a name which is more than local. He is 
possessed of much skill as an architect and is a practical 
man of sound ideas, and since his connection with the pres¬ 
ent city administration he has proven himself to be a val¬ 
uable public servant. 

Mr. Christy has prepared the plans and specifications for 
practically all public buildings erected here in the last 
decade. The most notable of these is the Boys’ High 
School, in Canal Street, which really stands as a monument 
to the skill of the City Architect. 

Mr. Christy was born in New Orleans September 5, 1880. 
He enjoys ali the advantages of a good education, is a pleas¬ 
ant gentleman to converse with and withal is an untiring 
worker, and those familiar with his efforts are free to say 
the city is to be congratulated in having the position of 
City Architect filled by so capable and so efficient an official 
as Mr. Christy. 


RUDOLPH HUFFT, 


Chief Clerk of Delinquent Tax Department. 


Rudolph Hufft, Chief Clerk of Delinquent Tax Department 
ol the Office of City Comptroller Arthur O’Keefe, is one of 
the best-known men of the administration of Mayor 
Behrman. Mr. Hufft is known throughout New Orleans as 
“Rudie,” and made legions of friends during the occupancy 
of the difficult post of Private Secretary to the Mayor, in 
which he was the predecessor of John P. Coleman, the 
incumbent. Mr. Hufft is prominently connected, having 
come of a family which first made its home in New Orleans 
many decades back. Before entering upon his public 
career he was engaged in various mercantile enterprises 
and successfully filled a number of difficult positions. He 
has been the collector of rentals from the public markets 
for the past half decade, and in that capacity has been one 
of those who took an active part in obtaining general bet¬ 
terment of market conditions and the maintenance of sani¬ 
tary conditions in the stalls of the municipal market places. 








N evv Orleans’ System of Sewerage, Water 

and Drainage 

\T EW ORLEANS HAS GONE FAR in municipal ownership — farther, perhaps, than any 
other American city; but of all her successful enterprises the one that has 
attracted the greatest amount of public attention is, probably, the Waterworks System. 

In the past decade we have experienced 
two extreme conditions. Ten years ago 
our sanitary equipment was unspeakably 
crude; and although the mighty Missis¬ 
sippi flows at our doors, the domestic 
water supply was scant and of doubtfu 1 
quality. To-day our sewerage system is 
not excelled anywhere and our water sup¬ 
ply is abundant, wholesome and cheap. 

Our people for many years realized the 
great need for certain public improve¬ 
ments; there was much discussion and 
many spasmodic attempts to better con¬ 
ditions. It, however, remained for the 
yellow fever visitation of 1895 to spur the 
citizens of New Orleans to a concerted 
effort, with the result that at a special 
election held in June, 1899, the property 
holders taxed themselves two mills for 
forty-three years to construct sewerage 
and waterworks systems, and to improve 
the drainage system. 

The women of New Orleans played a 
prominent part in the campaign preceding 
this special election, and it was largely 
through their efforts that the skeptics 
were convinced and the tax was voted by 
a substantial majority. It is said that it 
was at this election that women cast their 
first ballots in this country. 



GEO. G. EARL, 
Superintendent. 


The water plant began furnishing filtered water early in 1909; and it soon became 
apparent that the system, from an engineering standpoint, would be an immense success. 
The mechanical difficulties having been satisfactorily disposed of, the Sewerage and 
Water Board turned its attention to the problem of devising water rates and planning its 
business organization. 

It was fully realized that the success of this enterprise would largely depend upon 
the good-will of the public; and that public co-operation could only be obtained by each 
taxpayer appreciating that he is a stockholder in the plant, and that he is getting a 
dividend in the form of efficient service at a small cost. With this constantly in view, 
the water rates were worked out with the greatest care; the operating and office methods 
were planned to obtain the greatest possible efficiency at a minimum expense. 


One of the most difficult problems any waterworks concern has to solve Is the 
rate ouestlon It is necessary to fix a charge that will cover the expense of operating 
and maintaining the system, and at the same time be fair to all classes of consumers 
New Orleans at first adopted a flat rate system, but soon realized that the enormous 
waste of water through unmetered connections would more than ottset any economies 
on the part of the Board in operating the plant. It was then decided to adopt an 
“all-meter” system. To-day every connection is metered and each consumer eliminates 
all waste and pays for exactly what he consumes. As a result the present rates are as 
low (and possibly lower) as those prevailing in any other city of the country. 

In planning the accounting, collecting, meter reading, inspection, complaint and 
information departments the inflexible rule was laid down that the public must get a 
“square deal;” that courtesy and efficiency must prevail. A representative was sent to 
various other cities to study first hand modern waterworks office systems and manage¬ 
ment, and to adapt them to our local needs. 

Despite the low charges for water, the economical administration of its affairs 
have enabled the Sewerage and Water Board to pay all the expenses of operating and 
maintaining the waterworks and sewerage systems and to set aside a sinking fund of 
approximately $285,000. 

The'water plant has been in operation eight years, and, having passed the experi¬ 
mental stage, the following claims can safely be made for it: 

1. That the plant, from a mechanical standpoint, has no superior. 

2. That the quality of water and the service are of high standard. 

3. That the rates are low. 

4. That it is self-supporting and financially sound. 

If the above items go to make success, this experiment in municipal ownership 
has, without doubt, been highly successful. 

SEWERAGE, WATER AND DRAINAGE. 

Not so long ago a rain of little more than ordinary dimensions in New Orleans 
was attended by practically a suspension of all traffic in its business center. Streets 
and sidewalks were flooded to a depth of several inches, and not only did the business 
district suffer but these untoward conditions extended to the residence sections of the 
city, where, in certain localities, houses were partially submerged, and the vagrant waters 
remained for weeks, or until ultimately soaked up by the sun. The results were loss of 
time, great inconvenience, much damage to property, a polluted atmosphere and an 
increased death rate. 

Always a matter of serious concern to the authorities and people generally of New 
Orleans, hundred of thousands of dollars had been expended to obtain substantial and 
permanent relief from these objectionable conditions. Large appropriations were from 
time to time authorized by the city for experimentations of one kind or another in the 
hope that some day New Orleans might possess a system of drainage competent to deal 
with any and every emergency. These numerous devices, each in its turn, however, 
proved a failure, and New Orleans was still at the mercy of storm and rain until 1895, 
from which dates the inception of the present magnificent system of drainage. In that 
year plans prepared by Mr. L. W. Brown, then City Engineer, were approved by an 

talorT M°H a ° f Engl ^ rs -- com P°s ed of Mr. Rudolph Hering, of New York, and 

I XL ? T " , B Rlchardso "' <* Orleans, all eminent in their 

profession. Then followed the creation of a Drainage Commission by act of the Legis- 



Page Sixteen 


v 




JAS. W. REYNOLDS, 

(Deceased) 

Late Superintendent of Police. 

Janies W. Reynolds, late head of the New 
Orleans Department of Police, was born in 
Algiers, August 29, 1868. 

He became identified with the local police 
department in 1893. In that year he received 
his appointment as a supernumerary clerk 


GEORGE LONG, 

Chief of Detectives. 

George Long, Chief of Detectives of the 
local force, has the distinction of being one 
of the cleverest, shrewdest and bravest plain 
clothes men in the South. Joining the force 
as a supernumerary patrolman on January 
25, 1893, the present head of the plain clothes 
bureau soon gave evidences of unusual skill 
in detecting crooks. 

Recognizing the ability of the young super¬ 
numerary, the head of the department pro 
moted him to the position of patrolman on 
May 24, 1893, and on December 1, 1897, he 
was made corporal. On January 26, 1906, 
George Long was made a sergeant. The next 


LOUIS PUJOL, 

Chief of Fire Department. 

Louis Pujol is a native of New Orleans. 
He was born September 11, 1866. He at¬ 
tended the public schools and later followed 
various commercial pursuits. 

In 1886, however, he developed a particular 
liking for the life of the fireman and joined 
the old volunteer department. He became 
connected with Pelican Hook and Ladder 
Company No. 4. Upon the organization of 
the paid department, on December 15, 1891, 
Mr. Pujol was appointed driver of Hook and 
Ladder Company No. 4. In 1902 he was pro¬ 
moted to the position of captain, and re¬ 
mained at that post until 1907, ■when he was 
promoted to assistant engineer of the Fifth 
Fire District. 

On June 21, 1911, Louis Pujol was pro¬ 
moted to the chief of the fire department, 
which position he now fills with credit and 
distinction. 

Chief Pujol is a member of New Orleans 
Lodge No. 30, Benevolent and Protective 
Order of Elks, Woodmen of the World, 
Knights of Columbus, the Firemen’s Char¬ 
itable Association and the National Associa¬ 
tion of Fire Fighters. 


FRANK T. MOCNEY, 
Superintendent of Police. 

Frank T. Mooney, Superintendent of Police, 
was born in New Orleans in 1870, and at¬ 
tended the public schools until 1883, when he 
entered the employ of the Illinois Central 
Railroad, in the service of which corporation 
he rose from the lowest position to that of 
Master of Terminals. On the untimely death 
of the late Superintendent James W. Reynolds 
he was unanimously chosen by the Commis¬ 
sion Council to the postion then made vacant, 
and resigned his position with the Illinois 
Central Railroad to accept the office. 

In Mr. Frank T. Mooney we believe that we 
have a Superintendent who will keep the 
police force up to the high state of efficiency 
that it had attained under his predecessor. 

Mr. Mooney is a strict disciplinarian, and 
has had wide experience in the handling of 
men, which will, no doubt, tend to increase 
the efficiency of the force of which he is the 

head. 


and was assigned to duty in the eighth pre¬ 
cinct. A week later he was appointed clerk. 

In 1904 Mr Reynolds was promoted to 
assignment on the Detective Bureau. Four 
years later, on June 16, 1908, he became the 
head of the bureau. 

Upon the death of Inspector O'Connor, the 
head of the Detective Bureau was the unani¬ 
mous choice of the Board of Police Commis¬ 
sioners for the position of Superintendent of 
the New Orleans force. The appointment 
was made on February 10, 1911, and from 
that time until his death Superintendent 
Reynolds had been untiring in his efforts to 
bring the department to the high state of 
efficiency it now enjoys. 

In the vear 1892 Superintendent Reynolds 
married Miss Roseada Shorey, of Algiers. 
The union was blessed with five children. 


promotion was to a captaincy. That was on 
September 7, 1908. 

The most important promotion received by 
him was on February 10, 1911, when Super¬ 
intendent Reynolds placed him at the head 
of the plain clothes bureau with title of Chief 
of Detectives. 

George Long was born in New Orleans 
May 16, 1870. He was educated in the public 
schools. 


Page Seventeen 




OLD MELPOMENE DRAINAGE WHEEL. 


NEW MELPOMENE DRAINAGE STATION NO. 1. 


Page Eighteen 


lature of 1S96, with Major B. M. Harrod as Chief Engineer. The construction work was 
begun in 1S97, although there had not been available at that time sufficient funds to 
carry the project to completion. In 1900 the first operation of the new and partly com¬ 
pleted drainage system was commenced. And in 1902 the operation and further develop¬ 
ment of the system was committed to the Sewerage and Water Board; in 1906 sewers 
in a large section of the more densely populated area of the city were in operation, and 
in 1909 both the new waterworks system and the sewerage system were in complete 
operation over nearly" the whole populated area of the city. Owing to the peculiar 
topography of New Orleans, the waters of the lake, of the navigation canals and the 
river have all to be kept out of the city by means of levees, and all storm water or liquid 
wastes of any and every kind are disposed of by pumping. “Prior to 1900,” says Mr. 
George G. Earl. General Superintendent of the Sewerage and Water Board, one of the 
most eminent engineers in this country", and to whom the credit for our present great 
systems of modern sewerage, water and drainage is particularly due, “storm water and 
all other liquid wastes were disposed of by means of paddle wheels, driven by steam 
engines. These wheels had a very small capacity, being capable of only a very low lift, 
so that the canals stood constantly nearly full of water. All foul liquid wastes found 
their way to these canals, through flat, open gutters, and the water both in the gutters 


and in the canals was very foul, while the soil of the city, as a whole, was saturated 
practically to the surface. Vaults and cesspools of the most offensive character existed 
on every premise, and the main and practically sole reliance for a water supply consisted 
of wooden cypress cisterns, which collected rain water from the roofs of the houses ” 
These combined conditions gave New Orleans an unenviable sanitary reputation-so 
bad, in fact, that proper municipal development was out of the question until they were 
corrected. Other cities had long been in the enjoyment of these priceless facilities. 
Because of the absence of them the growth of New Orleans, on the other hand, was being 
seriously retarded—in fact, the town began to lag behind several other cities, which, 
although greatly inferior to our own in the more important essentials of a great city, 
were the fortunate possessors of efficient systems of sewerage, water and drainage. 
Thus came the solution of the water supply problem. The studies and preparation of 
all plans for the waterworks, just as had been done in the matter of sewerage, were 
made by the Engineering Department of the Sewerage and Water Board, under the 
direction of its General Superintendent, Mr. Earl; the Advisory Board of Engineers, 
composed of Mr. Rudolph Hering and Mr. George W. Fuller, of New York, and Major 
B. M. Harrod and Colonel H. B. Richardson, and Messrs. L. W. Brown, A. C. Bell and 




















































































































































It was confidently asserted at the time that the purification of the Mississippi 
River water to the extent of converting it into a perfect and healthy product for 
drinking and other household purposes was an impossibility. This contention was more 
or less warranted by reason of the utter failure of the old waterworks company, which 
had undertaken some years previously to filter Mississippi River water in quantities 
sufficient to meet the public demands. There were not a few who favored the city 
obtaining its water supply from some stream north of Lake Pontchartrain, while others 
believed a sufficient and satisfactory artesian supply might be obtained. Between 1892 
and 1900, however, much valuable knowledge had been gained as to the proper methods 
to be applied to the purification of the water of the Mississippi River. In the experi¬ 
ments that followed it was found that the bacteria existing in the Mississippi River 
showed vastly less signs of the effect of sewerage discharge from the cities above New 
Orleans than are found in the river water reaching any of the higher cities, due to the 
great distance traveled, as well as to the effective conditions present in the river water 
at the upper end of the city, ten miles above the nearest sewer outlet. New Orleans. 
Mr. Earl stated, could turn out an effluent without filtration which would have been 
considered entirely satisfactory before the people became educated to the perfect output 
from the complete plant. The effluent from the filters has always been entirely free 


FILTERS AND HEAD HOUSE, WATER PURIFICATION STATION. 



INTERIOR OF FILTER HOUSE. 

from suspended matter, bright, sparkling and a perfectly safe and satisfactory water for 
all purposes. It possesses every desirable characteristic that can be found in the best 
natural water supply. 

With a complete water system came a thorough and most efficient system of 
sewerage—the one working in conjunction with the other. Its object is to effect the 
removal of fouled household and manufacturing wastes, and, like drainage, the sewage 
has to be lifted one or more times by pumping before it is finally disposed of. The 
final disposition of sewage is into the Mississippi River some forty feet below low water 
level, and so does not appear on the surface. There are 500 miles of sewers, capable 
cf receiving and delivering to the various pumping stations the discharge from some 
80000 premises, of which already some 65,000 are connected with and using the sewers, 
i he great pumping stations are nine in number, of which three discharge directly into 
the Mississippi, six merely lifting sewage from a low level to a higher level gravity- 
sewer and sending it to the discharging stations. The six relifting stations are elec- 
tricall.v and automatically operated without any attendants other than that they are 
all visited once daily for lubrication, etc., and in this service two men and a horse and 
wagon are engaged. 



Page Twenty 



























































WOOD SCREW PUMP. 

INTERIOR OF NEW DR AIN A 
TYPICAL CF THE SIX STATIONS 


DISCHARGE FROM ONE 12-FOOT 


TWELVE-FOOT WOOD SCREW PUMPS 










Subsequent to 1909 extensions of the sewerage and water systems have continued 
as well as further large improvements of the drainage system. By the end ol Uli the 
investment in these three systems will have bean nearly $30,000,000, against which there 
is an indebtedness of only $20,000,000 of 4 per cent bonds, the remaining $10,000,000 of cost 
having been paid for as the work progressed out of current revenue. 

By the time the last of the $20,000,000 of bond money has been expended the city 
will have: 

A main drainage system, consisting of some 66 miles of low-level canals, 25 mile-> 
of tide-level or leveed outfall canals, and seven great pumping stations operated elec¬ 
trically, with two power stations for their operation, all capable of removing as much 
water every twenty-four hours as a rainfall of 7 1-3 inches in twenty-four hours pre¬ 
cipitates. 

The cost of the subsurface drainage system, which takes the place of the anti¬ 
quated and altogether inefficient surface gutters in the removal of storm water, is not 
included in the above stated cost of the sewerage, water and drainage systems, for 
the reason that this expense is met by assessment of property benefited, together with 
paving assessments. To date this subsurface drainage amounts to over $2,000,000. The 
power and pumping stations, to remove storm water from the drainage system, Mr. Earl 
says, probably aggregates the greatest low-lift pumping proposition in the world. 

‘•The aggregate volume of water,” says Mr. Earl, “which all of these pumps can 
discharge, if massed at a single point, would equal a volume of water 10 feet square 
about 1 1-3 miles long every minute, and exceed 7,000,000,000 gallons per day. Enough to 
fill a lake a mile square about 33 feet deep. The original large pumps of the drainage 
system had capacities ranging from 250 to 300 cubic feet per second each, and the newer 
pumping units, eleven of which are now being installed, each will have a capacity of 
about 550 cubic feet per second, or nearly 15,000,000 gallons per hour. 

Ultimately all storm water, now being pumped into Lake Pontchartrain, will find 
its outlet in Lake Borgne, some fourteen miles east of the city. 

The water system consists of nearly 600 miles of new water mains, covering the 
whole populated area, supplied by two pumping purification plants, one on each side of 
the Mississippi River. The water, after being cleansed and purified, is sent by pumps 
into the distribution system, maintaining about a 60-pound pressure, whch gives a very 
efficient fire protection with consequent material reduction in losses from that cause. 
The capacity of the pumping and purification systems is 66,000,000 gallons daily, and 
for short periods an even greater rate of output. 

Speaking of the effects of drainage, it can be stated that cellers, hitherto unknown 
in the arcihtectural scheme of New Orleans, with this new improvement, became an 
accomplished fact, so that now many of our largest buildings are thus provided, base¬ 
ments being constructed from twelve to fifteen feet below the surface. With the com- 


. nrsiaae—New Orleans has 

bined efficiency of the three systems— severe, wa resl)e cts one of the 

become one of the healthiest cities on the comment, and 

,„st desirable as a ,d,ce of residence. ^ ^ o[ im Prlor to thl3 

The Bel.rn.an Administration .on.n.en ^ Commission and by the 

date there had been expended on dramas Commls sion was merged in 1903. 

Sewerage and Water Board, »' th ^ on 5ewerage a „d waterworks $2,515,000. 

$4,866,000, and by the Sewerage a expenditures on each 

or a total of $7,381,000. Subsequently, up to January 1st, 1916, 

c.f the three systems have been as follows. 

$6,209,000 

Drainage . 9,274,000 

Waterworks . . 4,813,000 

Sewerage .... 

$20,296,000 

Total . . 

or a grand to,a, o, $21,611,000 on the three systems. Besides these construction expendb 
,„res the Sewerage and Water Board, out ol funds budgeted by the city for drainage 
oner..,o„ and maintenance, and from water rates for water and sewerage 
and operation, has maintained and operated the three systems and be Board is 
expending annually about $618,000 for these purposes, in addition to the $2,,6.1,000 
expended on construction, there has been paid upwards o, $6,500,000 Intern* on bonds 
and there will be available for extensions annually an amount, star ing in 
$400,000 and gradually increasing with the growth of the city. 

The work done prior to the Behrman Administration consisted in the construction 
of the drainage system to a point of operation and the starting of work on sewerage 
construction. Subsequent to 1904 the greater amount of expenditure on sewerage con¬ 
struction was finished, the whole of the waterworks system completed, the extent, cost 
and efficiency of the drainage system approximately doubled, and the plan and organiza¬ 
tion for maintenance and operation of the three systems fully developed. 




Page Twenty-Two 








Page Twenty-Three 


































The Public Belt Railroad 

The necessity for a belt railroad as a solution for unsatisfactory terminal arrange¬ 
ments was apparent many years before the city succeeded in establishing a terminal 
railroad. 

New Orleans, possessing natural physical advantages, has always been a terminus 
for trunk railroads and ocean steamship lines. Becuse of lack of proper terminal facili¬ 
ties of any character, however, the transhipment of freight to and from all the 
ports of the world was restricted, steamship cargoes of immense capacity were 
drayed, and the port being without the essential requisites for the expeditious and 
economical handling of reiglit was at a disadvantage. The industrial business of the 
city was also practically without belting service. Sections of track belonging to the 
several trunk lines were located at various points along the harbor front with only 
limited connections. The trunk lines which enjoyed valuable terminal facilities at 
various points in the city and superiority of location restricted the belting service to 
long-haul freight handled over their own rails. The discontinuity of tracks prohibited 
switching service in many instances, and when the service could be performed, such 
advantage was only secured under conditions of serious delay and heavy expense. 

Among the important matters which confronted the Behrman Administration upon 
its induction into office in December, 1904, was the Belt Railroad project, which was 
then in profess of formation. The Public Belt Ordinance creating the-present Public Belt 
Railroad Commission and providing a right of way around the city had been adopted in 
October of that year, but the first work under the ordinance to establish the Belt remained 
to be done without the funds with which to do it. Mayor Behrman realized the necessity 
of providing facilities for the development of the commercial functions of the city, and 
applied himself assiduously in the interest of the Belt project. He was constant in 
attendance at meetings and familiarized himself with the details ol the proposition. 
The survey of the Belt Line was undertaken by the Commission, and, while the ordinance 
provided a right of way around the city, as the work progressed and plans were prepared, 
many obstacles developed which for a time threatened to preclude the possibility of 
building the line along the water front without prolonged litigation. Practically the 
entire proposed right of way along the river front from Peniston Street to the lower 
limits of the city was involved, and negotiations were opened by the Public Belt Railroad 
Commission with all the trunk lines in the city with the view of clearing the right of way. 
These lines had vigorously opposed efforts made in the past to establish a public belting 
service, and the effort out of which grew the present Belt Railroad system was likewise 
strongly resisted by them. That the right of way was cleared and the work of laying 
track begun in September, 1906, was due to the firmness of Mayor Behrman in enforcing 
the rights of the city in the premises. The railroads were forced to realize the determi¬ 
nation of the city to build the Belt, with the result that the negotiations were conducted 
upon well-established lines of business policy, and it is to the credit of the administration 
that the right of way referred to was perfected without resorting to the courts and that 
friendly relations were maintained with all interests involved. 

It must be considered that in these early days of the struggle to acquire the 
Public Belt the enterprise was without the friendship and assistance that was later 
given to it when success was reasonably assured. This support was lacking not because 
the wisdom of the policy of the city to own and control its terminal facilities was 
doubted, but because the people were discouraged by their experiences in the futile 
efforts of past years to build a Belt. It was considered unfeasible in view of the physical 
conditions existing along the river front to engage in an undertaking of such magnitude. 


, as apparently unable to provide suitable financial means 


more particularly as the city w 

to prosecute the work. rommission pressed hard for solution. The 

The financial difficulty confronting gecure financial assistance. When 

inauguration of the work depen e< u|< °” nized there was not a dollar in the 

the Public Belt Railroad — mj adopte d in 1900, had ap- 

Treasury for the purpose, revenues of the city, but the money was not 

propriated $40,000.00, basec upon the 1900 Ordinance, provided an additional 

~ t . Th :;“r^^rr"tt::ir^ 0^,0 was'available, and legisla- 
tlon*^was^equired^to secure that s»n,. which was put in possession o, the Co„,n,is.io„ a 
lew months after its organization. 

As the location for the road progressed Mayor Behrman recommended to the City 
Counclf that funds be provided for its construction. Because of the difficulties surround- 
^ the proposition there were no other means by which the money could be secured. 
The desire to build at least a portion of the Belt was strong on him, and from time to 
time upon his recommendations, appropriations were made in anticipation of the reve¬ 
nues of the city, the money being secured by the issuance of 5 per cent interest-bearing 
certificates against the general revenue of the city, the aggregate amount of appropria¬ 
tions and certificates, including interest, approximating $534,691.68 to December 31, 1916. 

It has been the effort of the Public Belt Railroad to develop the industrial business 
of the city as much as possible with the means at its command, and it now serves 
seventy-two industries. These industries are provided independent transportation con¬ 
nection with all the trunk lines entering the city, various warehouses and the public 
wharves. This service has enabled railroads without track connection adjacent to the 
industries to secure freight which was formerly denied them because of their inability 
to make delivery at points as advantageous as competing lines enjoying track privileges 
in the heart of the city. 

That the city could not provide necessary funds was evident, and an act, supported 
bv the Behrman Administration, was introduced into the General Assembly proposing an 
amendment to the Constitution of the State of Louisiana to authorize the issue of 
$2,000,000.00 of 5 per cent bonds, based on the.earnings of the road and amply secured 
by the City of New Orleans, the proceeds of the bonds to be applied to construction 
purposes. The amendment was adopted by an overwhelming vote of the people at the 
general election held on November 3rd, 1908. 

The construction, maintenance and operation of the Public Belt is vested in a 
Board of Commissioners composed of the Mayor of the City of New Orleans and sixteen 
citizen taxpayers. The ordinance provided for the appointment of the members of the 
Commission by and with the approval of the Council of the City of New Orleans, as 
follows: Three members from the New Orleans Board of Trade, three members of the New 
Orleans Cotton Exchange,, two members of the Louisiana Sugar and Rice Exchange, two 
members of the New Orleans Progressive Union, two members of the Mechanics, Dealers 
and Lumbermen’s Exchange, and five members to be appointed from citizens of New 
Orleans at large. The Council fixed the tenure of office of the first appointees, as follows: 
Two members each for two, four, six, eight, ten, twelve, fourteen and sixteen years, and 
provided that the successors of the first appointees shall be appointed for terms of sixteen 
years. The Mayor of the City of New Orleans is President of the Commission, the City 
Attorney is Ex Officio Attorney of the Commission, and the City Engineer Ex Cfficio 
Engineer. 

The Mechanics, Dealers and Lumbermen’s Exchange having been succeeded by the 
( ontractors and Dealers Exchange, the Belt ordinance was amended to provide for repre¬ 
sentation for said Exchange in the Commission by the appointment of two members from 


Page Twenty-Four 


that Exchange, upon the expiration of the terms of the members selected from the 
Mechanics, Dealers and Lumbermen’s Exchange. 

The members of the Commission receive no salary or other compensation for 

services. 

The objects and purposes of the Commission are, and it is fully authorized and 
empowered by the Ordinance creating it, to acquire, own, locate, construct, maintain, 
operate and control in the name of and for the benefit of the people of the City of New 
Orleans a double-track Public Belt Railroad in the City of New Orleans, together with 
all spur tracks, switcn tracks, sidings, crossovers, locomotives, cars, depots, warehouses, 
shops, stations and all other appurtenances to railway location, construction, main¬ 
tenance and operation. 

A double-track Public Belt reservation, extending from the upper line of the Parish 
of Orleans down the river front to Convent Avenue; through Convent Avenue to the 
« 0 uth side of Florida Avenue, thence from the intersection of Convent Avenue and south 
side of Florida Avenue, through the rear of the city, across Bayou St. John and the 
New Basin Canal to the Upper Protection Levee, and along the Upper Protection Levee 
to the intersection of Leake Avenue; together with the double Belt tracks construe e 
thereon by the Illinois Central Railroad from the Upper Protection Levee to the upper 
side of Audubon Park, is irrevocably dedicated to the people ot the City ot New Orleans 
for perpetual and exclusive use as location for a double-track Public Belt Railroad. 

The Commission held its first meeting and was formally organised on November 

' n<i ' 'Following the organization of the Commission the active development of the Belt, 
as previously 1 stated, was begun upon the induction into office of Mayor Martin Behrma. 
in December 1904 The members of the Commission were united upon the pnncip e 
c".opera«on?exercising themselves diligently for the consummation them effort, and 
,. prp stronelv supported by Mayor Behrman in their work. 

were Btronsi^ ^ ^ „ rst rail on ,he Public Belt was fastened by a “golden 
spike driven by Hon. Martin Behrman, Mayor and President of the Commission, on t e 
mam'line on the river front near Lafayette Street. This auspicious occasion was at- 

tended with appropriate^cerenmmes.^a^ ^ m „ re than » 40 ,,00.00 from appro- 

relations made by the 

the Emission" lla,!' been enabled 

confronted with the "“f f" “‘he Bel'T M ayor Behrman was appealed to. and with 
l.King the physical construe, on of o r itnance to provide an appropriation of 

his support the City Council ag c0U ld be made with the banks ot 

5100 , 000.00 for made by the Finance Committee of 

the city to carry the loan. 1 S Council, several banks of 

the Public Belt Railroad C °“" 11 ®gg r “’ sum 0 f $100,000.00 upon 5 per cent interest- 
the city agreed to advance the gg redeemed by the payment annually 

bearing certificates of the of Mayor Behrman. the City 

of $10,000.00. In Decern er ^ $250,000.00, stipulating in a contract with 

Council provided further funds in the s ts should advance $225,000.00 of 

r: ^~t« ce_ of the City .New Orleans for 

city appropriated $50,000,00 additional, the 

money being secured under the sam< " C ° d f switch connections from which to 

Belt was begun on august 1, - 


A brief history of the Belt Railroad project at this juncture might not prove 
uninteresting. twenty . five years of exhaustive consideration of the matter of 

r r “j — — 

a, ,er ecus, durable the laws pertaining to the 

r of tue Hve S r front for commercial purposes, and declared against the bestowal 

r ra, ”?r^ 

ahnost the e jncoming roads should have equal facilities to the river front; 

that "under the French, Spanish, Roman and Common Laws, the wharves, Quays and 
levees were dedicated to public use for one object-commerce, and that-the governing 
iTornies cannot legally alienate them from such use as they are without authority to 
deprive anybody of his rights therein. ThisCommittee submitted a brief quotmg many 
decisions of the Supreme Court of Louisiana, showing that this public right is mh 
in evervboly. The levee “belongs as much to a citizen of Ohio as to a citizen of New 
Orleans- it is a place left open for the conveniences ot commerce and for the use 
ns hole world. A thing hors du commerce (a thing out of traffic not to be bartered 
disposed oil” The Supreme Court ot Louisiana, 18th Ann.. Page 3PT. sets forth: . o 
ZTindividual, proprietor ot .be banks ot a navigable stream, ran appropriate them 
exclusively to his own use and at bis pleasure construct levees or erect buildings o 
wharves that will obstruct the tree use ot its banks to all men. although the right o. 

m oDerty is in him as proprietor of adjacent lands. 

All of this was illustrated to make clear the possibility of securing the requisi 
,ight of way for a Belt Railroad, and the Committee, in urging its proposition submitted 
a tentative route for a Belt Railroad around the city. This effort, however, like others 

cast upon similar lines, was never consummated. 

The proposition to build a Belt Railroad to be owned and operated -b> the City o 
New Orleans which culminated in the establishment of the present Public Belt Railroad 
7a! first submitted in 1897, and the spark of life was given to it in the Municipal Im¬ 
provement Association, which was composed of men prominent in commercial and public 
life This Association advocated the public ownership of a Belt Railroad and included 
it among other improvements for which they recommended a bond issue to the Constitu- 
tional Convention of 1898. The recommendations appertaining to a Belt Railroad ver 
not adopted The effort, however, was continued, but to secure a right of way along 
the river front over which private corporations were enjoying privileges and operating 
!hem for their own purposes to the exclusion of the free use of the public, proved a 

cexatio^problem.rious ^ presented in the attempt of the Texas & Pacific 

Railway Company to avail itself of certain privileges which had been granted by the City 
Council to the New Orleans Pacific Railway Company by various ordinances passed in 
1880 and 1881. In the latter year the New Orleans Pacific Railway Company entered m o 
an agreement with the Texas & Pacific Railway Company, by the terms whereof the 
former company consolidated itself with the Texas & Pacific Railway Co by granting, 
bargaining, selling," etc., unto the Texas and Pacific Railway all the franchises, corporate 



rights or privileges of the New Orleans Pacific Railway Company, etc. The ordinances 
granted to the New Orleans Pacific a right of way down the levee from Audubon Park 
to Thalia Street, and Thalia to Claiborne, to Canal Street, and up Claiborne Street to 
Carrollton Avenue; also from Claiborne Avenue through Walnut Street to the river. 

These privileges were conditioned upon the performance of certain obligations, 
and in consequence of the failure of the Railroad Company to comply with the terms of 
the grants, the said grants were repealed by ordinance adopted in 1884 and 1SS6. 

Litigation which had been pending in the matter was revived, when public opinion 
began to manifest itself in favor of the Belt project. It was contended by the Railroad 
Company that the adoption of the repealing ordinances violated the contract created by 
the ordinances bestowing the privileges, and they sought to have the said repealing 
ordinances cancelled, and the rights of the Texas & Pacific Railway Company enforced. 
They offered to surrender the right to run through the city if the river front privileges 
would be confirmed, but the compromise was rejected by the city, and the case was 
finally disposed of by decision of the Supreme Court of the United States annulling the 
privileges which had been given to the New Orleans Pacific Railway. The successful 
issue of this suit cleared the way to some extent for a Belt Line. The railroad, although 
estopped from availing itself of the alleged privileges through the city, was, however, 
persistent in its efforts to secure a river front grant, and a proposition to construct the 
levees from the Jefferson Parish line down the river front in consideration of the right 
of the railroad to locate its tracks thereon was rejected by the Orleans Levee Board, who 
declared that the levees would be built by the constituted authorities. At that time the 
levees were not in the state of completion they are to-day, but the Levee Board neverthe¬ 
less was firm in upholding the public character of the river front. 

Further progress in the direction of acquiring a right of way was made when the 
Illinois Central Railroad endeavored to reach the river front from the rear of the city. 

To secure these privileges the public thoroughfare now known as Leake Avenue, 
extending from Peniston Street to the upper limits of the Parish of Orleans, was created 
by the acquisition of private property by the City of New Orleans, for which the Illinois 
Central Railroad paid over half a million. On the neutral ground of this avenue the 
Ilinois Central were required by the terms of an ordinance passed in February, 1899, to 
provide a graded right of way for two tracks for the Public Belt Railroad and to build 
two Belt tracks from the upper limits of the Parish of Orleans to the upper side of 
Audubon Park, in consideration of which the said Railroad Company was given the privi¬ 
lege for two main line tracks on said street, which tracks now parallel the two Public 

Belt tracks. 

The commercial interests of the city as represented by its public exchanges were 
alert for every opportunity to advance the interests of the proposed Belt Line, and civic 
pride was now awakened in the direction of safeguarding the river front against the 
encroachments of private corporations, with the result that in August, 1900, an ordinance 
providing a Public Belt Railroad system was adopted by the City Council, and became 
known as Ordinance No. 147, N. C. S. 

The City Council declared in this ordinance that the commercial levee in the Port 
of New Orleans was public, i. e„ belongs to the people for purposes of commerce; that 
the public levee cannot be legally alienated or obstructed so as to prevent the free and 
equal use of it by all persons who require it for the purposes of commerce; that the 
export and import commerce of New Orleans was dependent upon the free and untram¬ 
meled use of the levee front of this port, and would be upbuilt if the control of the water 
front remained in the hands of the public representative business citizens, and would be 
dwarfed and perverted if it passed into the hands of any railroad corporation, even under 
the most stringent restrictions; that the present experience of separate sections of the 
levee being controlled by different corporations demonstrated that railroads furthered 


. nnnn the general business, by each cor- 
tlieir own interests by oppressing and oVer its section as would be a full charge 

Deration exacting as much tor handling gl t ^ along the river front would 

for traversing the entire water t«>nt, t great commercial growth must ensue 

be permanent public improvement to . water front, with equal rights 

to the city from the unrestricted use by all railroads ot our 

to all and special privileges for none at a Qf the road was vested in a Board 

The construction, > naintenance . and Executi ve Officers of the city, and was 

of Commissioners composed of the^^y ^ ^ ^ Qperated by the City of New 

the first law establishing a Be appropriated for the years 1901, 

Orleans. Under me terms of sa,d OT J, ma ”“ „ e ™ s of the Budgets ot the City ot New 
1902. 1903 and 1904 in the Reserve Fund portions ot the s 

New Orleans set aside for pubUc lmprovements^ie^ the ordinance traversed 
As the proposed right of way Qf port Commiss ioners, the requisite ap- 

p e rovllo y f ^Z^TseZZtron, said Board, which concurred in the ordinance under 

—=: zssr. sis 

• tv nnd , mder the terms of an ordinance passed in August, 1900, granting the privilege 
city, and under tne t street, the company paid 

tor the erection of thej was dedicated lo Public Belt Railroad 
$10,000.00 in consideration of the grant, which sum RpU ordi . 

purposes This amount and $30,000.00 of the sum appropriated in the original Belt 
nance was subsequently turned over to the present Public Belt Railroad Commission 
shortly after its organization, and formed the nucleus of a fund for the construction of a 

Relt There'was no progress made in the physical construction of the Belt under the 
Plan adopted by Ordinance No. 147, but the citizens who had fostered the project weie 
constant in their attention to it and unyielding in their effort to preserve inviolate the 
public character of the river front looking forward to the time when conditions would 

warrant the active development of the enterprise. 

But notwithstanding the existence of the Belt Ordinance, the New Orleans & San 
Francisco Railroad applied for and was granted a privilege by the adoption of an ordinance 
iu February, 1903, for a right of way over the double-track Belt Line and reservations on 
the river front from the upper limits of the City of New Orleans to Henderson Street, 
under the condition that said company would construct at its own cost and dedicate to 
perpetual public use double tracks from the upper side of Audubon Park to Henderson 
Street, the said two tracks to be a continuation of the Belt tracks built by the Illinois 
Central Railroad under the terms of the Leake Avenue grant. The ordinance further 
provided to complete the Belt tracks to Clouet Street; that the Public Belt authorities 
should have the right to grant the use of the tracks to any railroad that was then in or 
which might thereafter come into the city, exacting from the railroads an amount equal to 
the amount that would be expended by the New Orleans & San Ftancisco Railroad, for the 
construction of the tracks to Henderson Street, and, in consideration of the contributions 
of the railroads, they would all be allowed to operate their own locomotives and cars over 
the Belt tracks. 

The Belt system as proposed under the terms of the Frisco ordinance was such 
only in name, and placed in serious jeopardy the establishment of a Public Belt Railroad 
system, to be owned, controlled and operated by public authority. The scheme was con¬ 
sidered impracticable, and it was recognized that the right given to one or more railroads 
to operate over a double main line, each of these roads having separate and individual 
interests in important switch connections could not but prove disastrous to the industrial 
and commercial interests of the city and Port of New Orleans. 

The ordinance met with strenuous opposition on the part of the advocates for a 



Page Twenty-Six 


terminal railroad to be owned and operated by the city, but was nevertheless finally 
adopted by the City Council, whereupon it was vetoed by Mayor Paul Capdevielle, and 
subsequently again adopted over the veto of the Mayor. 

Mayor Paul Capdevielle then entered suit to annul the franchise on the ground that 
the Council purported to make a grant to the New Orleans & San Francisco Railroad of 
a right of way over the double-track Belt Line and reservation on the river front from 
the upper limits of the city to Henderson Street, although said tracks would be laid and 
pass through considerable portion of the public landings of the City of New Orleans 
which were exclusively under the control and administration of the Port Commission. 
The case was decided by the Louisiana Supreme Court adversely to the city. The Board 
of Port Commissioners then intervened in the effort to maintain the integrity of the 
projected Belt Line, and the contentions of the Port Commission were sustained by the 
I.ouisiana Supreme Court. The decision annulled the grant purported to have been made 
by the City of New Orleans over the Belt Line and reservation on the river front in so far 
as the territory under the jurisdiction and control of the Port Commission was concerned, 
and had the effect of nullifying the purported grant of the entire right of way over the 
Public Belt Line and reservation on the river front from the upper limits of the city to 
Henderson Street, or any other point. 

Closely following the adoption of the Frisco ordinance, the Louisiana Railway & 
Navigation Company, in September, 1903 were granted the identical river front privileges 
as were bestowed on the Frisco, with certain other track rights in other portions of the 
city. 

The ordinance declared that in the event of the New Orleans & San Francisco 
Railroad Company failing “without legal excuse” to build the Belt tracks from the upper 
side of Audubon Park to Henderson Street, the Louisiana Railway & Navigation Company 
should build said tracks under the same terms and conditions of the Frisco ordinance. 

The New Orleans & San Francisco Railroad, having been legally prevented from 
building the Belt tracks, the privilege given to the Louisiana Railway & Navigation 
Company was without effect. 

Thus far the effort to secure a Belt Railroad had been valuable more in the direc¬ 
tion of establishing the principle for its public control than in the realization of any 
plans that had been adopted. The commercial community was now enthusiastically in 
favor of the absolute public ownership of the Belt and were intent in the purpose to bring 
about the early development of the project. 

A few of the strong advocates for a Public Belt Railroad placed the matter before 
the several commercial exchanges of the city, and in the early part of 1904 a joint con¬ 
ference was formed comprised of members from the New Orleans Board of Trade, New 
Orleans Cotton Exchange, Progressive Union, Louisiana Sugar and Rice Exchange and 
the Mechanics, Dealers and Lumbermen’s Exchange, to recommend a plan for a Belt 
Railroad system. 

To devise such a system as would meet the necessities of the city and port of 
New Orleans required considerable thought and consumed much time. It was the purpose 
of the framers of the law that the Public Belt would be built and operated upon improved 

methods and be commercial in character. 

This conference labored a greater part of the year on the effort, and after studying 
the conditions at terminal centers as well as the local situation evolved the present 
system which, being recommended to the City Council, was finally adopted, after great 
consideration of the matter by the Streets and Landings Committee of that body. 

The law creating the Public Belt Railroad Commission became know as Ordinance 
No. 2683, N. C. S., and was adopted October 4, 1904, and approved October 8, 1904. The 
ordinance described the terminal conditions existing in this city and urged the necessities 
for a Public Belt Railroad in the following words: 


•The industrial progress of the city and port of New Orleans renders it a matter 
ol great and even vital importance that a system of terminal deliveries should be devised 
whereby all railroads, all industries and all water craft be enabled to transfer goods with¬ 
out restriction, discrimination or delay. 

“The present system * * * has encumbered the streets and landings of the 

city, belonging to various corporations, whose competitive interests compel delays and 
restrictions at times amount to prohibitions; this situation limits industries in 

many cases to the facilities of a railroad on whose track it is located, and 
further prevents the location of new industries that require the widest and freest facili¬ 
ties for collection and distribution of their goods. 

“It is of great importance that facilities should be provided for the location of 
industries in the rear of the city and on the banks of the navigation canals as well as 
on the front, whereby said industries and those in the present commercial district can 
reach and be reached by every railroad or steamship line now trading with the city, or 
hereafter to come. 

“In the rear of the city there is a large area of unimproved property that, provided 
with terminal facilities as expressed above, would be rapidly improved by various in¬ 
dustries. 

“Such a terminal system could easily establish and operate an industrial and real 
estate bureau for securing and locating new industries, and * * * would greatly 

facilitate the work of collecting and disposing of city garbage, the filling of lots and 
similar work of public and private utility. 

“Public policy dictates that new railroads entering New Orleans, and those now 
here, whose franchises are insufficient or nearly expired, should be furnished terminal 
facilities upon a broad, permanent, well-defined plan without discrimination. 

“All tracks now existing or to be built upon the public streets and landings should 
be for the free use of the public upon the most economical terms. 

“All this can only be secured and availed of by public ownership and control and 
the various private interests involved can only be harmonized and included in a general 
and comprehensive terminal system, by substitution for same on equitable terms of 
greater advantages than now possessed, by full right to use a comprehensive and enlarged 
terminal system covering every point now reached and that can be hereafter reached 
by railroad tracks within the city limits, and the most practical means whereby conflict¬ 
ing interests can be harmonized, plans prepared, construction and operation can be 
carried on, is through establishment of a commission composed of commercial interests, 
where all concerned shall be fully and fairly represented.” 

The ordinance provided that the dedication of said reservation in so far as the 
same may traverse, cross, intersect with or encroach upon territory under the jurisdiction 
of the Board of Port Commissioners should not become final until said dedication in so far 
as said territory is concerned shall be ratified and approved by the Board of Commis¬ 
sioners of the Port of New Orleans. 

The required ratification and approval of the Port Commission was secured by 
resolution of said Board, adopted January 17, 1905, and contains the following provisions: 

“The approval of this Board shall remain in force only as long as the Public Belt 
Railroad is exclusively operated, managed and controlled by the Public Belt Rairoad 
Commission, and that no rights or privileges are granted to any railroad company to 
control, manage and operate on said track.” 

A similar ratification and approval given by the Board of Levee Commissioners 
contains this provision: 

“The approval of the use of space or reservation, wherever the said space or res¬ 
ervation is within the jurisdiction of the Board of Commissioners, Orleans Levee District, 
is under the following terms, stipulations and reservations: That this approval shall 




8 


remain in force and have effect only as long as the Public Belt Railroad shall he exclu¬ 
sively operated, managed and controlled by the Belt Railroad Commission, and that the 
management and control of the Belt Railroad shall be separate and distinct from that 
of any railroad entering the City of New Orleans, and no employee, director or officer 
of any State or Interstate Railroad shall be employed by or allowed to act as director, 
commissioner or manager of the Public Belt Railroad, and that no rights or privileges 
are granted to any railroad company to control, manage and operate on said tracks, and 
that all said tracks shall be and remain the sole property of the City of New Orleans at 
all times and under all circumstances.” 

In face of the legislation passed in the interests of this great public utility, n 
November, 1905, under an ordinance passed in February, 1903, the Louisiana Railway & 
Navigation Company attempted to assert certain alleged rights and privileges on the 
Public Belt tracks and on the Public Belt reservation on Leake Avenue, as the successors 
of the Frisco Railroad, to said privileges, notwithstanding the fact that the Frisco Rail 
road were estopped from exercising said privileges by decree of the Supreme Court, and 
the further fact that the said company were silent witnesses to the passage of the Public 
Belt ordinance and all subsequent legislation, and the actual physical construction of the 

Belt had begun. , . .. 

The Louisiana Railway & Navigation Company undertook to break ground tor the 

building of the Public Belt tracks in the upper section of Leak Avenue, and, upon their 
refusal to desist in the work, Mayor Martin Behrman was appealed to, with the result 
that the forces of the Louisiana Railway & Navigation Company were arrested by the 
city’s police force and properly charged before the courts. 

Mayor Behrman. as president of the Commission, then promptly filed suit in the 
Civil District Court to restrain the Louisiana Railway & Navigation Company from 
attempting to build any portion of the Belt track or to operate over said tracks. Injunc¬ 
tion issued in due course and was properly served. There was no attempt to dissoLe 
the injunction, but a petition was filed in September, 1906, praying for a judicial seques¬ 
tration of the Public Belt reservation from Audubon Park to Henderson Street. The 
application was denied and no appeal was taken. The suit was finally tried on the merits 
and judgment rendered by Judge E. K. Skinner, of the Civil District Court, perpetuating 
the injunction (September, 1909). Appeal was taken, and the Louisiana Supreme Court 

sustained the citv, and the litigation was thus ended. 

The charge for switching is now $2.00 per car (flat) per movement, which move¬ 
ment includes both the delivery of the loaded car and the return of the empty, or vice 
versa. The flat charge of $2.00 per car is by comparison low for the service rendered, 
but even on this charge the revenues have covered all the expenses of operation and 
maintenance and provided annual surplus more than ample to pay the interest on out¬ 
standing indebtedness. 

PROPERTY OF THE PUBLIC BELT RAILROAD OCTOBER 1, 1916. 

, Miles. 

Trackage: 24 

Main Line .. 12 ' g ’ 8 

Cotton Warehouse Terminal . .. ' 

Switches, Wharf Tracks, Interchanges and Team Tracks and Yard Tracks . - • 


Total 


58.04 


EQUIPMENT—SWITCHING LOCOMOTIVES. 

9 60-Ton Baldwin Type. 

4 65-Ton Baldwin Type. 

Total, 13 


The ,ot„ cost of the road and etf.tent to Becenther ,1* to 

,U62 '™ Pahtic Belt Rai.roatl serve, eteveo public delivery tree*, and has connected 

with seventy industries, manufactories and warehouses. 

a- f the public Belt Railroad are confined to the 
At the present time the operations o g territ ory and to the extension 

active commercial river front, to mdus entire city will be belted, bringing 

recently made to the rear of the city. fa( , ]ilies . The opening of a 

the outlying districts into close to j will be a stimulating influence for the 

large tract of isolated property to belt service 

establishment of factories. 

nbiip-ntion of a common carrier, operating 
The Public Belt Railroad assumes the obhg ^ ^ associate member of the 

under appropriate traffic rides anc regula ^ Ru ies Agreement> Master 

American Railway Association and a member ot ti e 

Car Builder," Association and Freight Claim Agent, Association. 

A, a member o, the Per Blem Rule, Agreemen, it pay, the owner, o^acl, and 

p:.“ ^... — 

railroads' operating In the United State,. Canada and Mexico. A, against the payment 
ol per diem charges, the Public Belt Railroad i, allowed an arbitrary reclaim of live days 
by the delivering line at the same per diem rate. 

The Public Belt Railroad operates under uniform demurrage rules, which allow 
the shipper or consignee forty-eight hours’ free time in which to release a car, and 
provides for a charge of $1.00 per day for detention in excess ot the time allowance. 
The purpose of the rule is to enforce expedition in loading and unloading. 

The Public Belt Railroad has connection with all railroads entering New Orleans, 
giving prompt service and making accessible to the trunk lines the wonderful natural 
facilities of New Orleans, and offers the same advantages to other trunk lines which 
may desire to enter the city. It is generally conceded that the service is cheaper than 
the trunk lines could perform for their own account. 

The switching service of the Public Belt Railroad is free to all users of the Belt 
in that the railroads absorb the switching charge on all competitive business, which, 
it is safe to say, exceeds 90 per cent of all of the business handled over the Public Belt 
Railroad. The operation of the Public Belt Railroad as a public function is satisfactory 
to the commercial and industrial interests of the city the people generally, and especially 
the railroads. 

RECORD OF CARS HANDLED. 

Year ending December 31, 1909, loads and empties . 82,085 

Year ending December 31, 1910, loads and empties 114,173 

Year ending December 31, 1911, loads and empties. . 144,731 

Year ending December 31, 1912, loads and empties.. 162,540 

Year ending December 31, 1913, loads and empties.. 176,920 

Year ending December 31, 1914, loads and empties.. 196,937 

Year ending December 31, 1915, loads and empties . 247,101 

Year ending December 31, 1916, loads and empties .. 231,920 

. The success which has attended the Belt Railroad enterprise warrants the expec¬ 
tation that its service will be greatly extended, but no matter how great may be its 
future development the skill with which the project was handled and the success which 
attended the labors of the Behrman Administration in its behalf will never be forgotten. 



0-5 < 


Page Twenty-Eight 




















/ 



W. H. ROBIN, M. D. r 
President of City Board of Health. 


New Orleans Healthier Than Ever Before 

in Its History 

The year 1916 chronicled a death rate of 18.11 per thousand of population, the 
lowest death rate on record. If we exclude nonresident deaths and those of colored per¬ 
sons" the figures would be 12.53 per thousand, a death rate which will compare favorably 

with the death rate of large cities elsewhere. . , , . 

The City Administration during the past twelve years has materially assisted in 

the lowering of the death rate by enacting, whenever necessary, practical and tar 
reaching sanitarv ordinances based on scientific lines, thereby enabling the Health De- 
artn-ent to more effectively protect the public health. Through the .gene, ot two o 
the " ordinances, the Anti-Mosquito and the Ratproohng Ordinances, ye low fever and 
plague have been successfully eradicated. In all probability neither of them will ever 
Sn obtain a foothold in our city; and It is an absolute certainty that another epidemic 

from either will never occur in New Orleans in the future. 

Regulations by city ordinances, providing for the cleanliness, wholesomeness and 

purity of our foodstuffs, have a great measure iniproved^ouiM'itulity,^insuring greater 

“te? r^uTdraTe"and" sewerage systems have also contributed largely in 

the same direction. improvement in public health, as the good 

It is reasonable to expect a / we move onwa rd, still lower death rates 

already shown « but the egm > welMirec ted sanitary regulations. The time is 

Will be heralded as a health resort. Our death rate 



from communicable and contagious diseases is exceedingly low. The percentage of 
improvement in this respect is shown by the following table: 

DEATH RATE PER 1000 OF POPULATION. _ 


tc, 

o 


33 


Scarlatina 

Diphtheria 

Typhoid 

Smallpox 

Measles 

% 

c 

C 

S 

S 

V2 

C 

o 

u 

V 

H 

Plague 

( 

.006 

.138 

.341 

* 

.101 

* 

.037 

* 

3.449 


.024 

.126 

.303 

.180 

* 

♦ 

.102 

* 

3.183 

* 

.041 

.135 

.278 

.235 

.012 

* 

.059 

* 

2.877 

* 

.011 

.105 

.510 

.028 

.202 

♦ 

.145 

* 

2.997 

* 

.069 

.132 

.298 

.025 

.039 

* 

.083 

* 

2.649 

♦ 

.166 

.067 

.257 

* 

.005 

* 

.045 

* 

2.187 

♦ 

.075 

.102 

.287 

.005 

.193 

* 

.045 

.008 

2.611 

* 

.011 

.067 

.284 

.005 

.107 

* 

.300 

* 

2.204 

* 

.027 

.155 

.131 

* 

.005 

.003 

.021 

.121 

2.507 

* 

.005 

.300 

.161 

.005 

.096 

* 

.032 

.126 

2.448 

* 

.005 

.300 

.209 

* 

.021 

.003 

.045 

.051 

2.887 

.027 

.005 

.294 

.209 

.013 

.007 

* 

.050 

.026 

2.939 

* 

.002 

.098 

.230 

.010 

.032 

.005 

.032 

.026 

2.870 

* 


1904 .-. 

1905 . . . 

1906 .-.- 

1907 .- . 

1908 . 

1909 . 

1910 . _ . 

1911 . 

1912 . 

1913 . 

1914 . 

1915 ... 

1916 . . 

* No deaths. 

It is very gratifying to announce that the general health conditions for several 
Years past show that a larger percentage of our residents dies at an older age, as will be 
observed in the following table: 

DEATHS BY AGES. 



From 70 to 80 


From 80 to 90 

From 90 t 


White 

Col 


White 

Col. 

White 


M. 

F.. 

M. 

F. 

M. 

F. 

M. 

F. 

M. 

F. i 

1904... 

.. 188 

218 

81 

80 

61 

99 

23 

27 

9 

18 • 

1905.- 

.: 185 

267 

70 

86 

57 

112 

18 

33 

8 

18 

1906... 

.. 191 

266 

67 

96 

59 

102 

34 

28 

9 

13 1 

1907.... 

.. 211 

251 

75 

104 

71 

125 

23 

31 

3 

20 

1908... 

. 208 

237 

76 

99 

59 

124 

28 

31 

7 

21 

1909... 

. 217 

238 

59 

68 

73 

119 

25 

33 

7 

20 . 

1910... 

241 

234 

63 

92 

75 

139 

20 

46 

7 

24 

1911... 

. 195 

254 

85 

75 

80 

112 

27 

31 

2 

22 

1912... 

. 251 

266 

79 

82 

71 

160 

28 

30 

H 

17 

1913... 

214 

235 

50 

84 

92 

130 

23 

28 

5 

16 

1914.. 

. 209 

291 

84 

84 

92 

160 

24 

37 

8 

20 

1915.. 

. 268 

298 

93 

99 

82 

166 

26 

49 

13 

31 

1916 

. 218 

246 

74 

93 

80 

112 

13 

41 

5 

23 


It is expected 

the 

mortality 

from 

communicable 

diseases 


Col. 
M. F. 


100 and up 
White Col. 
M. F. M. F. 


6 

8 

12 

5 

3 

10 

2 

4 

6 

10 

10 


19 

21 

14 

11 

16 

14 
10 

9 

17 

( 

19 

15 
8 


6 

5 

4 


3 

1 

1 

1 

1 


a 

1 

3 

2 

y 

1 

1 

1 


11 

10 

5 

5 

5 
4 
8 

6 

O 

O 

2 

3 

*> 


lower when the Municipal Hospital, erected and equipped with the most perfect safe¬ 
guards, comforts and conveniences known to modern science, opens its doors for the 
care and treatment of all contagious diseases. At present only smallpox patients are 
admitted. One hundred and thirty-five cases of smallpox have been admitted since 
December 21st, 1916, with 100 per cent of recoveries thus far. 

The care and prevention of communicable diseases is chargeable directly to the 
Health Department, and the good results obtained by it in controlling them are attribu- 



Page Twenty-Nine 





































88 



W. T. O'REILLY, 

(Deceased) 

Late President of City Board of Health. 

table, in a large degree, to the prompt and efficient co-operation of the medical profes¬ 
sion, the medical department of the School Board, the United States Public Health 
Service and the tendency of the public in general to show their appreciation of improved 
health and sanitation. 

PERCENTAGE OF DEATHS PROM OLD AGE. 


Deaths 70 Years 


Year. T 

1904 . 

1905 . 

1906 . 

1907 . 

1908 . 

1909 ... 

1910 . . 

1911 . 

1912 . 7,054 

1913 . . 

1914... . 

1915 . 

1916 . 


1 Deaths. 

and Upwards. 

Perce 

6,819 

841 

12 

7,329 

900 

12 

6,819 

905 

13 

7,633 

940 

12 

7,345 

917 

12 

6,770 

880 

13 

7,250 

969 

13 

7,055 

907 

12 

7,054 

1,026 

14 

7,088 

896 

11 

7,417 

1,042 

14 

7,752 

1,177 

15 

6,847 

926 

13 


West End Lake Shore Park 

The General Assembly of Louisiana by Act No. 30 of 1871 authorized the Missis¬ 
sippi and Mexican Gulf Ship Canal Company, a corporation then existing and domiciled 
in New Orleans, to excavate drainage canals and build protection levees within the limits 
of the Parish of Orleans. As part of this scheme of drainage and protection, the com¬ 
pany was empowered to dig a canal and with the excavated earth to build outside of 
the canal a protection levee in the rear of New Orleans and near the shore of Lake 
Pontchartrain; the exact location of the canal and levee to be designated by the Board 
of City Administrators of the City of New Orleans. 

During the year 1873 W. H. Bell, then City Surveyor, prepared for the Board of 
Administrators a plan, subsequently approved by said Board, to govern the cair.\ing 
cut of this project. This plan extended from the Seventeenth Street Canal to the Peoples 
Avenue Canal, a length of approximately four and one-half miles. This plan proposed 
the construction of an earthen embankment to be located approximately eight hundred 
feet out in the lake bed beyond the then existing shore line. At the rear of this embank¬ 
ment would be created a deep water basin for harboring the water craft and at the 
same time provide a low area basin for the drainage of the City of New Orleans. The 
project contemplated the construction of extensive docks with suitable switch tracks 
and connections with the trunk line railroads. 

Locks were to be installed on the line of the embankment at the head of Bayou 
St. John and at the head of the New Basin Canal to provide for entrance and exit of 
water craft irrespective of difference between the lake and drainage basin elevations. 
Large pumping plants would be installed on the line of the embankment at the head of 
the Peoples Avenue, London Avenue, Orleans Avenue and the Seventeenth Street Drain¬ 
age Canals for the purpose of maintaining a low enough elevation in the basin harbor to 
effect efficient drainage for the City of New Orleans. 

The Mexican Gulf and Ship Canal Company very soon became involved in financial 
troubles. Subsequently on November 22nd, 1872, the company assigned all its property 
to Warner Van Norden, acknowledging an indebtedness in excess of $160,000.00 for 
moneys advanced. Van Norden proceeded with the enterprise to a greater or less extent 
until eventually the city, having been authorized to do so by Act 16 of 1876, concluded 
to purchase of \ an Norden his plant and to undertake itself to do the work. To 
that end the then Mayor, by an Ordinance of May 26th, 1876, was empowered to enter 
into an agreement with the Ship Canal Company and Van Norden for the absolute sale, 
relinquishment and transfer of all their property, rights, privileges and franchises, and 
upon the execution of the agreement to draw upon the Public Administrator of Finance 
for $300,000.00 in drainage warrants in full settlement. 

B- an act of sale executed June 7th, 1876, the dredging plant, as well as the fran¬ 
chises, privileges, contracts and advantages of the company and Van Norden were trans¬ 
ferred to the city in consideration of $300,000.00 of drainage warrants aforesaid. 

The system of drainage devised under the Mexican Gulf and Ship Canal scheme 
was never carried into effect and the West End property, with its reservoir, basin or 

na r T f r a Part 0f any drainage and levee system properly so called, 
although the embankment was partially constructed by the Mexican Gulf and Ship 

Canal Company and its assigns and subssquently completed by the City of New Orleans 

from the Seventeenth Street Canal to the New Basin Canal a i Pn pH,' f . , , 

9 9 oa m V , , oasin Lanai, a length of approximately 

’; 0 feet Thls e ™ bank ment was approximately 100 feet wide at its top, with an ele- 
^ ation approximately 8 feet above mean lake level. 

. 1( . Tn tdie year 1869 the state of Louisiana granted the right to the New Orleans and 
eta.r.e Railroad Company to extend its Canal Street car line to West End from its 



Page Thirty 





















then present terminus at the cemeteries. As a feeder for this extension, the New 
Orleans City and Lake Railroad Company, in 1880, leased from the City of New Orleans 
for a period of thirty years the section of earthen embankment referred to. This 
company then constructed a platform approximately 400 feet square over the waters 
of Lake Pontchartrain on the north side of the embankment and abutting the New Basin 
Canal. On this platform was erected a large frame hotel and restaurant building, to¬ 
gether with other smaller buildings for the housing of various amusements; additionally, 
the embankment for its full length was improved and embellished by the construction 
of a shellroad on its inner side, rockeries, statuary, fountains and the planting ot tree.-* 
and plants of various kinds. 

Thus was created the base of what is now known as “West End Lake Shore Park." 

The lease referred to provided at the expiration thereof all the improvements 
that had been made by the railroad company were to revert to the City of New Orleans. 
Several years before the expiration of the lease the New Orleans Railway and Light 
Company, who had acquired the various properties of the New Orleans City and Lake 
Railroad Company, sought to renew the lease for a period of years, but the officials of 
the City of New Orleans realizing the great and growing possibilities to result from the 
improving of West End were unwilling to consider any proposition which would not 
embrace extensive improvements. Thereupon City Engineer W. J. Hardee prepared an 
elaborate plan of improvement, but the officials of the railroad company, while they 
approved this plan, could not agree with the officials of the City of New Orleans upon 
satisfactory terms for a new lease. Pending final disposition of the matter the New 
Orleans Railway and Light Company was permitted to continue to operate the city s 
West End property annually covering a period of about three years, in consideration 
of the company maintaining the property and all of its appurtenances in good order and 

condition. 

During May of 1909 the New Orleans Railway and Light Company purchased the 
Spanish Fort property and proceeded to develop the same in order to provide a lake- 
shore amusement park which it would fully and entirely control. In connection there¬ 
with however, transportation facilities had to be provided which could be most economi¬ 
cally accomplished by extending the West End car line from West End along Adams 
Avenue to Spanish Fort. The company thereupon made application to the City Council 
tor a franchise to cover this two miles extension of the road. Mayor Behrman realizing 
that the city was without the funds necessary to fully develop and improve West End 
as outlined bv the Hardee plan, and, further, that the developing and improving o 
Spanish Fort would seriously interfere with, and probably delay, the improving of West 
End insisted with the offlcials of the New Orleans Railway and Light Co.hpany, in 
m ’l lan tn the nercentage of gross receipts fixed by the City Charter to be paid for the 
^ ' ‘ 10 , F t ex tension of the West End Railroad franchise, that the New Orleans Rail- 
, P ^ ni d i jght Company lend the City of New Orleans $175,000.00 in cash, to be paid 

• to the City Treasury from time to time as demand for its expenditure would occur, 
into the 5 per cen t per annum interest until liquidated, and to be 

the said of We st End Lake Shore Park. After some delay 

liquidated oi t . ,. Comnanv agreed to the proposition of Mayor 

th New protect i, was ZZZ to secure passage o, a legislative 

Behrman, i rate 0 f interest thereon and method of liquida- 

til aU ThTs iZ wa S s done°by Act No. 9 of the General Assembly of the State of Louisiana. 

Session °f , N Orleans commenced to de- 

„ftpr the act went into effect, tne Lily or iww v/nea 

veiop andZroTe Wee. End Lahe Shore Path in genera, accordance w„h the pian pre- 

pared by City Engineer Hardee eight years previous >. 


The first work to do was to construct a sea wall, which had » 00 ““ 

out in the lake, north of the old earthen embankment, extending para lei thereto fron 
thP west bank of the New Basin Canal for a distance of approximately 2,-00 feet to a 
o^ abreast of the east bank of the Seventeenth Street Canal, continuing with a wing 
wall and therefrom to the earthen embankment, thus forming an inclosure, which, 
coupled with the surface of the old earthen embankment, embraced an area amounting 

to approximately thirty acres. niA H 

The construction of this sea wall was commenced during October of 

completed during July of 1912, at a cost of $68,255.34. 

W hen the sea wall was nearing completion a contract was awarded to the I o 
Dredging Company for the filling in, by hydraulic dredge, with earth taken from the bed 
7.2"Take so L three or iour hundred fee, front of the wail. O. 0H # area between the 
wall and the earthen embankment. This filling approximated 420,000 cubic jards and 

cost $45,152.00. . 

During the early part of 1914 the aforesaid filling had sufficiently dried out to 

Permit the construction of shell driveways and foot walks, as well as the ° 

subsurface drains, water service, etc., throughout the par*, an a —«* 
was awarded to Mr. Jones S. Irvine, and completed on November 8th, 1914, at a 

$62,310.55. . . 

Subsequently the four main roadways encircling the front and rear of the park. 



FOUNTAIN. 

Installed by W. A. Dilzel 












and the two ends, were oiled, and are now as fine roadways, both for appearance and 
comfort, as are to be found anywhere in the United States. 

The Hardee plan contemplated that the various amusement devices would be 
located in the main park abreast of the south side roadway, but the West End Lake 
Shore Park Advisory Board, which had been created at the instance of Mayor Behrman. 
concluded that it would be inadvisable because of the limited area of the park with 
reference to future development, to utilize any part of the park for such purpose, ant 
it was, therefore, decided to fill in the lagoon, or bay. at the rear of the park and create 
an area approximately 500 feet square at the west end, or Seventeenth Street Canal, eni 
of the park to be occupied by the various amusement concessions, so as to maintain the 
main park open and free of obstructions of whatsover kind. 

This area has been created, and, in accordance with the plan prepared by City 
Engineer Hardee, has been graded, drained and sewered and various driveways and foot- 

walks have been constructed thereon. , 

It was decided to erect the largest prismatic fountain in the world, to be locate 
at the center of the main park, which has been done at any expense of approximate > 

$24,000.00. x 

Incidentally the main park has been embellished by a contract awarded to the 

Metairie Ridge Nursery Company, Ltd., with the planting of various kinds of trees 
shrubs and plants, all of which are now growing in a healthful condition, at a cost o 

approximately $9,000.00. - 

Furthermore, two commodious and ornamental public comfort stations, one fo 

males and the other for females, have been constructed at the west end of the park, am 
additionally, six shelter stands, for the convenience and protection ot the public in all 
stages of weather, have been constructed at intervals along the rear of the front side 

road* ay. g ^ Grleans Rai iway & Light Company, as a part of the lighting system of 
the Citv of'New Orleans and its parks, has installed and is operating a very comp ete 
illumination system by means of ornamental iron posts, with single lights, controlled 
and operated by means of conduits and underground service. 

All the foregoing improvements have been completed at an expen 1 ure o 
$175,000^ borrowed ^roni the New Orleans lUilway * L.sht Company, as Iteretnhetore 
mentioned and. additionally, approximately $177,000 has been expended out of the 
reserve funds of the City of New Orleans, dedicated by the City Charter for *or s o 
public improvement, making a total expenditure for the creation and development of 

Park ’ The West' E n d° I.ake~ Shore Park Advisory Board and Mayor Behrman have now 
under consideration several propositions looking to the leasing for a period of years of 
the concessfon area above described, which will not only result in the making of West 
Fnd t ake Shore Park the most beautiful and attractive park in the South hut at the 
same tin™ afford su,«c,e„. raven,,,, from the said lease to operate the place w.thont 

expense to the city. 

PUBLIC TREE PLANTING. 

Some twelve years ago a number of men and women organized the | New Orreans 
Tree Society For many years it had been plain to observant persons that little had 
been done to beautify the streets and avenues and to add to the comfort of the peop e 
bv planting trees. Following an old custom, each property holder, if he cared for trees 
planted such varieties as he thought proper in front of his house, and it is possible 
see to day in a single block oak trees, spaced ten or twelve feet apart, chinaberry rees, 
palms. Spanish daggers or any other variety that the taste, or rather the lack of taste, 

of the householder might dictate. 


v ,1th that Louisiana possessed in the way 
The Tree Society felt that with the we beautiful city, and efforts 

of suitable trees New Orleans could be• mfttter . 

"ere made by the society to educate president of the Tree Society, he 

When the eminent Dr. Joseph never be made what it ought to be 

immediately pointed out that New Ore sidewalks and neutral grounds 

unless the city government should assume-controlof 8ingle commission, 

and place the work of systematic tree- P^rngm gave jt his cordial e n- 

When the matter was laid before Ma5 rommiS sion of New Orleans was created, 

dorsement, and in a short time the 

composed of the following gentlemen appoi . Oertling, W. H. Douglas, 

Dr. Joseph Holt, President; Major Allison Owen, Gus Oertling, 

J. C. Mathews. Commission, a careful study was made 

Immediately upon the organization o . f treeSj aild in a very clear 

of the whole subject of beautify mg the city a e fundamen tal principles without which 
and definite way the Commission adopted , 0 f these principles was that 

be assured at the same time. 

During the last few years the planting of palms in New Orleans hat> been done 
on an extensive scale. Now, while these palms are beautiful and add much to the at¬ 
tractiveness of New Orleans, they are. of course, purely ornamental and in no sense 
shade trees. Then, too, the palms will not withstand the severe cold weather fro 
which New Orleans suffers every few years, and when such cold waves appear large 
numbers are killed. If, therefore, the sidewalks were to be generally planted with pa 
a temperature of fifteen degrees would he very disastrous. The Parking Commission, 
considering these facts, decided that palms should be confined mainly to the parks, 
public squares and to a comparatively few sidewalks, reserving most of the sidewalks 
for the planting of shade trees only. 

It was realized at the beginning of the work that it would be utterly impossible 
to obtain from the neighboring woods trees of uniform size and quality, and so, in a 
truly scientific way, the Commission determined upon the establishment of a tree nursery. 
This nursery has been in existence some six or seven years, during which time, under 
the able superintendence of the late Edward Baker, fully 50,000 trees have been raised 
from seeds and seedlings. As an example of the scientific way in which this work was 
done, Mr. Baker gathered in Audubon Park, from two of the finest middle-aged oak trees, 
the acorns from which his oak trees were to grow. Each acorn was carefully examined 
for defects and none but the perfect ones were planted. Starting thus with perfect 
seeds and planted in virgin soil, the young oaks, following the well-known laws of 
botany, grew rapidly and vigorously, and it is certain that these young oaks as they are 
transferred to the public sidewalks will grow with unusual rapidity, because of the fact 
that they inherit the vigor of the parent tree and were cultivated under the most health¬ 
ful and scientific surroundings. 

In like manner trees of other varieties were planted, and whenever any signs of 
inferiority showed among the saplings they were immediately dug up and thrown aside, 
because, as Mr. Baker himself expressed it, it did not pay to plant inferior stock, and 
only disappointment would result. 


CITY’S FINANCES 

Of the many problems which this administration has bean called upon to solve 
none equalled in importance or was fraught with the complex difficulties such as were 
those attending the readjustment of the city’s fisc by the refinancing of all outstanding 
short-term certificates and the retirement of the city’s entire floating debt, the plan for 
which was, after several conferences with Mayor Behrman, initiated and completed by 
Commissioner Lafaye of the Department of Public Property. Mr. Lafaye subsequently 
participated in the drafting of such legislation as was deemed necessary to put the plan 
into operation. 

In New Orleans, as in all other large cities of the first class, the recent demand 
for public improvements of all descriptions, and even for aesthetic developments, has 
exceeded by far in point of cost the revenues available for such purposes. 

Under the city’s charter and according to the provisions of the State Constitution, 
New Orleans was required to reserve and set aside out of its general revenues for vvork 
of permanent public improvements $400,000 per annum. This amount was undoubtedly 
sufficient for this purpose at the time of the enactment of this legislation, but proved to 
be woefully insufficient within the last eight or ten years. In order to comply to a 
greater extent with the clamor for public improvements of all kinds, and particularly 
street paving, the city administration in the year 1908 appealed to the State Legislature 
for the privilege of anticipating for a period of ten years this $400,000 reserve fund. The 
Legislature granted this request, and for a period of two years, from 1908 to 1910, the ^ 
local authorities attempted to comply with the demands made by the citizens for such 
improvements as the building of new schools, engine houses, street paving, etc., but b\ 
the latter part of 1910 there had already been expended out of the ten years reserve 
funds $3,439,000, almost the entire amount authorized, and, regardless of this considerable 
expenditure there had accumulated paving petitions representing in cost for the city's 
proportion over $2,000,000. In a further effort to satisfy the demand for public improve¬ 
ments, the State Legislature was again appealed to, and this time the request was for 
permission to anticipate the future revenues for five years additional, making a total of 
fifteen years. The Legislature granted this second request. 

As a result of this method of financing the city accumulated a debt of approxi¬ 
mately $6,000,000 bearing 5 per cent per annum interest, and the demand for public 
improvements continued to increase. It, therefore, became clearly evident that some 
other means of financing the cost of public improvements must be devised. 

In analyzing the expenditure of these reserve funds with a view of determining 
on some future of financiering it was ascertained that of the total expenditures 69 per 
cent represented the cost of street paving, and by compiling statistics we learned that 
according to the existing paving law the division of the cost of street paving as between 
the benefited property owner and the general fund of the city the proportion paid by the 
city was 79 per cent of the entire cost, whilst the property owner only paid the remain¬ 
ing 21 per cent. 

By comparison with other cities of the first class of the division of the cost of 
such work it was found that the provisions of the old paving law under which the 
municipality was operating placed too large a proportion of this cost on the city. This 
investigation clearly demonstrated the necessity for correction in the paving laws. After 
a complete and comprehensive study of this subject the new paving law was confected, 
and aside from correcting numerous objections and difficulties existing in the old law, 
it provided a redistribution of cost which, in practice, has demonstrated the proportion 
to be assessable—approximately 80 per cent against the property owner and 20 per cent 
tc the city Thus it is the city can now execute contracts for $1,01)0,000 worth of paving 


by [laying approximately $200,000 from the general revenues, whereas the same amount 
ot work under the old law would have drained our general revenues to the extent ol 
$790,000. 

Since the enactment of this law the aggregate of the annual paving contracts has 
exceeded $1,000,000, and general fund expenditures have been well within the revenues, 
and, according to present plans, we expect—in fact, it is the city s intention to complete 
a paved system of connecting boulevards and prominent thoroughfares, as well as the 
jiaving of the entire commercial area, representing an expenditure within the next four 
or five years of from $6,000,000 to $7,000,000. 

With the solution of the method of financing the paving cost and the resultant 
confining of the annual expenditures within the limits of the city s revenues, the first and 
most important step towards the refinancing of the city had been accomplished. The 
next step required the funding of the $6,000,000 outstanding short term certificates, as 
well as a floating debt of the city government and the School Board, amounting to 
$3,000,000, which debt developed from the deficts in revenues as against expenditures of 
both administratives bodies over a period approximately eight to ten years. By means 
of economies in expenditure and reduction in public improvements other than street 
paving, the administration succeeded in confecting a plan authorizing the issuance of 
89,000,000 of serial bonds. The fact, however, that these bonds w'ere authorized and sold 
and the floating debt liquidated does not constitute the important accomplishment of this 
refinancing plan. 

In addition to the aforementioned results care was taken in the drafting ot this 
constitutional amendment to delegate to the citizens, taxpayers and governing authorities 
of the City of New Orleans absolute “Home Rule” in the administration of its financial 
affairs. The bonds hereinabove referred to, issued under the provisions and authority 
of this amendment, represent the first issue of what is to be ultimately the parent bond 
plan of this city. As the various types of bonds other “than this recent issue’’ mature, 
they are to be liquidated and retired, and if revenues and extensions are necessary they 
are to be replaced by issues under this new plan. 

In drafting the new plan authorizing additional issues in the future when conditions 
warranted or required such issues, every precaution was taken to simplify the method 
of procedure, and at the same time to place the right of final decision in such matters 
in the hands of the taxpayers. The plan simply requires in the issuance of additional 
bonds that the Council, by ordinance, authorize the issue and demonstrate the ability of 
the city’s fisc to pay interest on and retire the issue serially. After the passage of the 
ordinance, it is referred to the Board of Liquidation of the City Debt for approval, and 
then referred to a vote of the taxpayers of the City of New' Orleans only, and not to the 
voters of the State of Louisiana, as was the case formerly with all bond issues of this 
city, for approval or rejection. With the entire bond issue well provided for in the pay¬ 
ment of interest and liquidation of principal, and the expenses of municipal operation 
maintained well within the revenues, the City of New' Orleans is now in excellent position 
to care for the potential development destined for it. 


THE NEW SYSTEM OF ACCOUNTING. 

So many excellent improvements have been made during the regime of Mayor 
Martin Behrman it is a difficult matter to decide where to start or where to end, so much 
good has been accomplished. 

One of the most important achievements w r as at the Mayor’s instigation. Mr. 
Charles E. Wermuth, the eminent, scientific expert accountant, w T as called in for con¬ 
sultation. 

Going thoroughly into detail as to the necessity of a comprehensive and exem¬ 
plified method of accounting, after careful study, Mr. Wermuth succeeded in devising a 


88 


system which was easy to understand and so complete and unique that other municipali¬ 
ties throughout the United States have copied it for their own use as being the most 
practical system used by any city or state government, and many commercial houses. 

It absolutely prevents carelessness on the part of employees, and positively pre¬ 
vents those glaring irregularities which have unfortunately occurred in previous adminis¬ 
tration. 

This system is such that the Commission Government can at very short notice 
know what its exact financial standing is. 

BUILDING PERMITS ISSU ED—C H AR ACTE R OF BUILDINGS, ETC. 

Captain Hardee, head of the City Engineers’ Department, reports the total number 
of building permits issued annually for the years 1901, 1902, 1903, 1904, 1913, 1914, 1915 
and 1916, as follows, including the style and character of buildings erected: 

1. The total number of building permits issued annually for the years 1901, 1902, 
1903, 1904, 1913, 1914, 1915 and 1916 are as follows: 

Year. No 

1901 . 


1903. 


1913 

1914. 

1915. 
1916 


Permits. 

Construction. 

Repairs. 

1,794 

$2,105,657.00 

$113,616.00 

1,835 

2,080,260.00 

122,405.00 

1,864 

2,943,119.00 

81,985.00 

1,887 

3,272,251.00 

64,267.00 

7,380 

$10,401,087.00 

$382,273.00 

1,857 

$3,893,296.00 

$184,535.00 

1,638 

2,745,031.00 

203,720.00 

1,352 

2,693,495.00 

136,011.00 

1,011 

2,926,449.00.. 

191,155.00 

5,858 

$12,258,271.00 

$715,421.00 

37 engine 

houses, 7 of which were 

of modern 


Total. . 5,858 

2. Up to December, 1904, there were 37 en 0 -- 

type; at the expiration of the year 1916 we find 53 engine houses, of which 25 could be 
classed as modern. Between tbe years 1904 and 1916 there were erected 25 engine 
houses, at a total cost of $341,376.17; of this number 8 replaced existing buildings, which 
were considered obsolete, or storm-wrecked, thereby showing a net gain of 16 new 
structures during the above period. 

3. There were in existence at the end of 1904, 70 public school buildings, 14 of 
these could be classed as modern, these having been erected subsequent to 1898. At 
the end of 1916 there were listed 86 school buildings, a total of 31 having been erected 
since 1904, and at a cost of $2,391,000.00. The purchase of many of the sites is included 
in the above amount. Of the thirty-one school buildings, 3 were for high school pur¬ 
poses, viz.: Sophie B. Wright Girls’ High School, Esplanade Avenue Girls’ High School 
and the Warren Easton Boys' High School. There was also erected 1 trade school, 
known as the Francis T. Nicholls Industrial School. Sixteen of the 31 schools replaced 

buildings which were considered obsolete. 

4. At the end of 1904 there existed 23 public markets, none of which could be 
classed as modern. At the end of 1916 there was listed a total of 23 markets, 9 of which 
are of modern type. The above referred to markets were constructed between the years 
1904 and 1916 at a total cost of $185,135.24. 

STREET PAVING. 

At the end of the year 1904 there were 29.08 miles of modern street pavements in 
the City of New Orleans; at the end of the year 1916 there were 182.25 miles of such 
pavements, so that from the year 1904 to 1916 153.17 miles of streets were paved by the 


o( _ (including subsurface drains) $9,249,486.17. 

c,tjr "r„ toT i zl «,e mmols 2 IZ 

1909-1910 paved 2.61 miles of afreets in connection » 


of the Third Ward; during the year 
paved 2.26 
vicinity of 


i<m-1913 the Trans-Mississippi Terminal Company 
mileTof’streetTn c7nnec~tion with their new terminals on the river front in the 
vicinity or Race Street, and during the year 1914 the Louisville & Nashville Railroad 
Company paved 0.92 of a mile of streets in connection with them new terminals on the 

river front in the vicinity of Poydras Street. 

NAVIGATION CANAL BRIDGES. 

During the year 1910 a bascule lift bridge was constructed over Bayou St. John on 
the axis of Esplanade Avenue, to replace the then existing swing bridge, at a total cost 
of $53,669.57, of which the New Orleans Railway & Light Company contributed one-half. 

The old bridge was re-erected over Bayou St. John abreast of Southern Par , to 
replace a then existing foot bridge, at a cost of $31,478.39; in 1913 a lift bridge was con¬ 
structed over the Carondelet Walk Canal on the axis of Hagan Avenue, to replace a then 
existing swing bridge, at a cost of $23,009.22; in 1914 a lift bridge was constructed over 
the New Basin Canal on the axis of City Park Avenue, to replace the then existing swing 
bridge, at a cost of $49,489.66, of which the New Orleans Railway & Light Company 
contributed one-half the cost; in 1914 a lift bridge was erected over the New Basin 
Canal on the axis of Lake Street, at a cost of $42,035.57; in 1915 a lift bridge w T as con¬ 
structed over the entrance to the Southern Yacht Club Pen, at a cost of $28,535.28, and 
in the same year another lift bridge was constructed over the Carondelet Walk C anal 
on the axis of Broad Street, to replace the then existing swing bridge, at a cost of 
$30,724.72. 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR. 

New Orleans, the maritime metropolis of the South, was selected by the United 
States Division of Information, Department of Labor, as the most convenient city in 
Labor Zone No. 7 for a central distribution branch. 

The condition under which this Federal office was to be established was predicated 
on the co-operation of the civil authorities in the maintenance of suitable quarters and 
clerical assistance and the amalgamation of all eleemosynary organizations, both State 
and Municipal. At a conference with Mayor Behrman and presidents of the numerous 
societies, an agreement was entered into whereby the Federated Employment Clearing 
House was created and became a fixture in the City Hall, under the supervision of Hans 
A. M. Jacobsen, a well-known labor leader, as inspector in charge, receiving an annual 
salary commensurate with the importance of the service. 

Mayor Martin Behrman realizing the no less important merits of a free employ¬ 
ment agency demonstrated his interest in a most substantial manner by obtaining the 
immediate consent of the Council Commission to provide commodious room space in 
the basement of the City Hall, with all modern conveniences, including a salaried sten¬ 
ographer, whose duties should be entirely devoted to the work and upbuilding of the 
service. Later, through the instrumentality of Mayor Behrman, the Divison of Informa¬ 
tion added an experienced junior clerk, in the person of Mrs. Clivia Blanchard, at a 
liberal salary, to take charge of the Women’s and Girls’ Department. This addition to 
the force was occasioned by the demand of the householders for domestic help and the 
large number of female applicants for clerical and household work. 

That the interest displayed by the Mayor in the unemployed of New Orleans and 
vicinity is illustrated daily by the popularity of this “Central Office.’’ Since the establish¬ 
ment. of the Federated Employment Clearing House in its headquarters, July 12, 1916, 
covering a period of six months, hundreds of idle persons have been directed and actually 
placed in remunerative positions through its agency. 


$ 


Page Thirty-Four 












































































New Orleans’ Public Schools 

S TRUGGLING AGAINST almost insuperable obstacles, Mayor Behrman and the School 
Board of New Orleans have placed the public school system of the city in the 
foremost position. This has been in spite of insufficient funds and the fact that the 
directors of the schools have had numerous prejudices to break down against the installa¬ 
tion of modern methods. Yet, year after year, the standard of the public school system 

has steadily advanced until it is now rated 
as among the best in the country, and one 
which affords protection for the students, as 
well as giving the benefits of the most ap¬ 
proved courses of educational training. The 
physical well-being of the child is looked 
after, as well as his mental, and through the 
munificence of the late Isaac Delgado, mil¬ 
lionaire sugar planter and refiner, a sum of 
$1,000,000 is to be provided for the con 
struction of a modern industrial and voca 
tional school, where manual training is to 
be provided for boys and girls. Already the 
public schools afford training in domestic 
science for young women, and the wants of 
the youths are now to be looked out for. In 
addition, the boys and girls are given gym¬ 
nastic and calesthenic training under com¬ 
petent directors, and an organization known 
as the Public School Athletic League has 
been formed which has done great things for 
the promotion of clean and honest sport and 
athletic games. It has also accomplished 
much in the betterment of the citizenship of 
New Orleans by giving the future men and 
women of the city not only stronger and 
more serviceable bodies but higher ideals 
and more lofty principles of conduct. 

The enrollment of the public schools of New Orleans is now close to the 60,000 
mark, including the enrollments for both the day and night schools. The school attend¬ 
ance has gone far ahead of the increase in population of the city; for in the ten-year 
, eriod 0 f 1905-06 to 1915-16 the enrollment in the public schools increased from 31,972 to 
51,491, or a gain of 19,519 in ten years, the equivalent of 61 per cent. This is probably 
three times the iate of increase of the entire population of the city, and speaks volumes 
for t he public’s appreciation of the educational facilities which are being given New 
Orleans children. In calculating these percentages the statisticians of the School Board 
a ere gratified to find that among the highest percentage of increase in enrollment was 
he kindergarten grades, these having increased from 1,353 to 3,175 in the ten-year period, 
3 r 135 per cent The percentage of increase in the elementary grades was 43.4; in the 
Tigh School, 141.8; Normal School, 75.6, and the average daily attendance, 51.6 per cent. 
School, 75.6,’and the average of daily attendance, 51.6 per cent. 

The increase in attendance of the night schools during the ten-year period was 
dienomenal, amounting to 836.9 per cent, the students having increased during this time 
Tom an enrollment of 404 to an enrollment of 3,785. Another encouraging feature shown 
'vas the evident desire of parents to have their children enjoy the advantages of higher 


J. M. GWINN, 
Superintendent. 


. of 141.8 in the ten-year enrollment at 

education, as was seen in the hildren enrolled, according to the last report 

the high schools. The number of colored children e a total ot 9.656. This Is 

or Superintendent J. M. Gwinn, was ( t l age which is placed at 

almost 50 per cent ot the available coloredit*, id en ot echo 8 • T he total 

T.ir.l, or 74.1 per cent. ^ t ^ devious year, and ,« is expected 

enromnent las, session «as 2.M'greater , since lncreaBe the 

Ilrmg the past gear has heen rated as ,u.. y 5,00 new 

reSld “ he expenditures tor the public school educational purposes last session amounted 
to $1,260,117.80. This is the sum distributed on the basis of total < 
m>ht schools as 51 491 gives the annual cost for each child as $ 

averlge attendance’of 39,517, it shows that the annual cost of schooling a child in New 
Orleans is $31 89 The total expenditures purchased 6,504,886 actual days ot schooling, at 
a cost of 19 2 cents per day for each child in attendance. A small-sized army of teachers 
and supervisors are in the employ of the School Directors for the carrying on of the 
public school work. Last season there were 1,407 teachers and supervisors, of whom 
I 306 were in the day schools and 101 in the evening schools. Classified according to sex. 
there are 72 males and 1,234 females in day schools, and 36 males and 65 females in the 
evening schools. According to color, there are 1,132 white and 174 colored employed in 
the day, and 101 white in the evening schools. Classified according to their work, theie 
are in the day schools 77 engaged in supervising, as follows: Three superintendents and 


BEAUREGARD SCHOOL. 


CC 




Page Thirty-Six 












a lice Officer. Division o, Physical Train, "Cvi 

Music—Mary Con.-ay, Supervisor. Division ol Dra e Dome9 tlc Science-Adele 

of Domestic Art-Essie Harks. Acting S “' ,e ,T*" n ' sl ,, n ey Crespo, Acting Supervisor. 
Stewart. Supervisor. Division ot Manna Teaming S.dn ^ of Bullaing3 . Orris 

Smir" ^DepartmenTof Supplies -M. J. Dison. Manager. 

Ti,e " ,,iiory ° ! ,h ' *• ° ( 

ms rr 

conditions made it almost impossible to give c John McDonogh, who may 

entitled. T„e„ came the philanthropy ot the roc- use hnnko Ma munifi- 

he termed the lather ot the public school system of New ™ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ erec . 

cence, thousands upon thousands of dollars Nvere ma e comfortable and well- 

tion of schools and other educational purposes. Some twent^^ ^ ^ ^ w&r NeW 
ecnipped school buildings were erected, an un &l facilitie s. Then came 

Orleans was one of the foremost cities in the Union lor during which the 

a period of chaos and destruction known as ie wea kened that it became 

nnhlie despoiler was abroad and the school system was so 


ROBERT C. DAVEV SCHOOL. 

f nhvsica i training, 4 supervisors of drawing, 4 supervisors of 

assi ",;:". sr-.——- rr 

music. 5, white super™ gp ^ Nonnal School acuity devote most ot them time 

to these supervisors, 2 ade work . the Division ot Hygiene employs 

to supervision of kindergarten a l Normal and Industrial 

4; the Division of Attendance ^ &re g secret aries and stenographers em- 

Schools and the Supenntende d& gcliools 1>214> inc luding 9 teaching 

ployed; in teaching there are empo.sec teachers in the Normal, 112 teachers 

• • „io o tpaching colored principals, 14 teacners 

white Principals, 8 Nlch0l „ industrial School, 7 teachers of manual 

in the High Schools, 11 teachers and sc w,„g in these 

training in the elementary “des, 82 in kindergarten, 2 teachers o, 

schools; 786 white teachers in the teachers in the elementary 

“r:r.-=r=£ : — 

r.r. ■»-•« ... ■“ 

supervision is 1,315. 

The following are heads of the school system: / 

T . Murr Gwinn, Superintendent, Nicholas 
Department of Superintendence oseim Assistant Superintendent. 

Bauer, First Assistant Superintended , ^ Dlrector Dlvislon 0 , Hygiene- 

Division of Educational itesearc Dlvlslon of Attendance-Ed.ard Hynes, Attend- 

Edmund Moss, M. D„ Medical Director. Division 


FRANCIS T. NICHOLLS INDUSTRIAL SCHOOL. 


Page Thirty-Seven 


























CLASSES OF FRANCIS T. NICHOLLS INDUSTRIAL SCHOOL 


Page Thirty-Eight 


























































necessary to reconstruct it entirely when the carpet-baggers were driven out and white 
supremacy was restored through the glorious victory of September 14, 1874, when the 
heroic citizens defeated the minions of the carpet-baggers and the Metropolitan Police. 
Then began the rennaissance of the New Orleans public school system. In the early 
days of this great work progress was slow, because of the lack of money with which to 
recompense teachers and the fact that numbers of private schools had been started, to 
which the best citizens were sending their children in preference to the public schools. 
Many buildings had to be rebuilt, and as new neighborhoods were created through the 
growth of the city new schools were necessary. 

Nevertheless the people of New Orleans came to the rescue and determined to 
build up the public school system to a position of eminence. Co-operative organizations 
were formed in every school district and the interest of the public was thoroughly 
aroused. In this work the late Warren Easton, whose memory has been honored 
through the construction of the Warren Easton High School in Canal Street, took a 
leading part. Mr. Easton was the Superintendent of the Public Schools from October, 
1S88, until his death in 1910, and much of the progress of the early years of scholastic 
reconstruction was due to his energy. He was succeeded in November, 1910, by Professor 
.1. M. Gwinn, a Missouri educator who had attained an enviable reputation as a school¬ 
man through a career of some fifteen years of training, which was climaxed by his 
appointment as the Dean of the Academic Department of Tulane University. Mr. Gwinn’s 
appointment was urged upon the school directors by many of the leading citizens of 
New Orleans and his endorsement by Mayor Behrman, the ex officio head of the School 
Board, received the hearty support of thousands. And the progress of the schools under 
Dr. Gwinn has been an ample demonstration of his ability along educational lines. Dr. 
Gwinn is a constructive genius as well as an able pedogogue, and he has succeeded in 
building up an organization which has made the public school system something which is 
of intense personal interest and pride to every householder of the ('rescent City. He has 
done this by the adoption of the latest and most approved methods of school work. 
Social centers have been organized; school co-operative bodies of all sorts have been 
fostered; neighborhood gatherings of parents and children were encouraged. Teachers’ 
organizations, principals’ bodies for the study and discussion of improved methods of 
scholastic work, clubs and other kindred groups have been formed, and all with the aim 
of vitalizing interest among the people themselves and showing them how necessary to 
the existence of the State is the adequate development of the public school system and 
its proper maintenance. Of these organizations the Public School Alliance is one of the 
most active. Much of the success of the recent campaigns of the Liberty Loan Bonds 
and for the $500,000 contribution to the Red Cross campaign made in a week was due to 
the solidarity of sentiment brought about by these school organizations. Groups of 
parents and patrons organized for the purpose of co-operating with several schools of 
the city have been of great assistance to principals and teachers in advancing the stand¬ 
ards of the schools, and in contributing to the upbuilding of a vigorous school spirit. 
These clubs have interested themselves in many activities, including endeavors to secure 
enlarged school grounds and additional buildings, furnishing equipment for the various 
athletic teams, increasing libraries, decorating and beautifying buildings and grounds, 


and givf „ g ms to the children at Christmas-time and rewards tor success m various 

as u.. .. <-«a,„ »>■>>»•- *» *“<*•"• Re "° r,s ,rom 47 * i,,te ei, " ,s 

show a total of 4,719 members and $7,826 raised last year. 

in these expenditures are included $653.31 for school library, $424.28 for decoration 
of the schools, rooms and halls, $336.69 for athletic supplies, etc., $396.89 for books, 
clothing and shoes, $254.13 for improving the school grounds. $49.73 for equipment for 
manual training, cooking and sewing, $561.72 for supplies for the schools, $2.<48.52 for 
entertainment, picnics and gifts to children, and $1,628.94 for other and miscellaneous 
purposes There were reports from eleven (11) colored clubs, showing a membership of 
420, with $838.77 cash balance from previous years, $764.63 raised during the year, and a 
total of $604.28 expended, including the following items: School library, $134.40; school 
decorations, $17.65; athletic supplies, $74; $5.80 for clothes and shoes; $45.80 for im¬ 
provement of school grounds; $137 for manual training and cooking; $33.50 for teaching 
helps; $51.90 for entertainment and gifts to children, and $228.40 expended miscel¬ 
laneously. 

Under the management of the Chi Omega Sorority of Newcomb College, with Miss 
Mary Railey actively in charge, the Penny Lunches at the Pauling School were continued 



ROBERT M. LUSHER SCHOOL. 












9688888886808 © 


WARREN EASTON HIGH SCHOOL. 

























through the year. Most of the financial support for these lunches was obtained through 
Mayor Behrman from his charity fund. 

Social centers were operated in the Davey, Nicholls, Jefferson, Live Oak and 
McDonogh No. 2 School buildings. The Social Center Committee of the New Orleans 
Federation of Women’s Clubs had general supervision of the centers. The Newcomb 
( ollege Alumnae Social Work Committee had active charge of the Live Oak Center. 
These centers are open on Saturday nights, and are largely attended. The program 
consists of literary and musical numbers and dancing. The School Board supplied the 
room, lights and janitors’ services and the Social Center Committee supplied the program, 
the music and supervised the entertainments. 

The Public Schools Alliance devoted much of its attention to school finances and 
co-operated with the School Board in securing legislation and appropriations from the 
Legislature for vocational and industrial education. 

In summing up the needs of the schools, Superintendent Gwinn, in his 1916 report, 
stated that not less than $500,000 was needed as an increase in the annual revenues of 
the schools. More than half of that sum is needed to meet the scheduled and fixed 
expenditures of the Board and to restore the salary schedule of teachers with certain 
merited increases; to employ additional teachers and supervisors and to supply necessary 
apparatus and give free textbooks to all pupils. He also recommends a woman assistant 
in the division of physical training. Dr. Gwinn states that the past four years covering 
the administration of the present board has been a period of rapid growth of the system 
and satisfactory improvement in the efficiency of the schools. The enrollment of the 
day schools increased 5,539, or 13 per cent, in the four years, and the high school enroll¬ 
ment increased 33 1-3 per cent. This is a remarkable increase considering the fact that 
a trade school for girls was established and enrolled 395 students. The following new 
buildings have been occupied: Warren Easton Boys' High School, McDonogh No. 14, 
Samuel J. Peters, Francis T. Nicholls, Benjamin Franklin, Gentilly Terrace, Lakeview, 
Danneel (colored) and Miro (colored). Sites have been purchased for a new school on 
Bayou Road and for a school in Algiers, near the Naval Station. The value of these new 
buildings, with their grounds and equipment, is approximately $900,000. An industrial 
trade school for girls was established; the departmental plan of teaching was inaugurated 
in the sixth, seventh and eighth grades; the principle of efficiency was incorporated in 
the salary schedule of teachers, principals and supervisors; a division of educational 
research was established and important surveys and investigations made; the standards 
for graduations from the high schools and for entrance into the Normal School were 
raised; the expensive plan of having music and drawing in the elementary schools taught 
bv a corps of special teachers was abandoned and the regular teachers were required to 
teach these subjects under the supervision of special supervisors. Courses of study were 
made more practical in its local bearing through the development of the New Orleans 
book and spelling lists and through industrial and trade courses in special schools and 
in the upper grades of the grammar schools. Another important accomplishment was 
the carrying on of a highly successful stay-in-school campaign to keep pupils at school 


in the higher grades. Appeals were made to the parents of students, and in numerous 
instances children who would otherwise have quit their schooling and gone into the 
business world with immature educational advantages have been induced to stay on 
and finish their high school courses. This work will, it is hoped, stimulate other pupils 
to more rapid progress and increase the registrations of pupils in the high schools, night 
schools and higher grades of grammar schools. Another important development was the 
teaching of Spanish in the night schools, so that working men and girls might have an 
opportunity to better their position by engaging in branches of export business to Latin- 
American countries. These classes were well attended, and scores of young men and girls 
were thus enabled to take up Spanish stenography and translations. The limited means 
at the command of the School Board made it impossible to do much that was planned, 
and required numerous economies in administration. In these economies the teachers 
theselves showed their civic pride. At one time, when the school directors were short 
of money, the teachers and other employees of the schools voluntarily agreed unani¬ 
mously to allow the deduction of a month’s salary of their annual stipend in order that 
the work might go on unhampered. It has been the proud boast of Superintendent Gwinn 
and the directors that every dollar was expended so as to gain the largest returns in 
education for the children. In this it is confidently believed that the children got advan¬ 
tages which were the equal, if not the superior, to those attained by students of many 
larger cities who had vastly more to expend than did New Orleans. In fact, it is asserted 
that the school work accomplished compared very favorably with that of any city in the 
country, even the largest. It is realized that this work must constantly increase in scope 
and magnitude. The proportion of the city’s indebtedness incurred in recent years for 
the erection of schools has been large, and clearly shows the disposition of Mayor 
Behrman and the Commission Council to give to New Orleans a public school equipment 
amply adequate and as good as the best in the country. All credit is due to Mayor 
Behrman and his colleagues for their liberal and wise support of the school building 
program. Nor is anyone in charge of affairs In the earlier years criticized or blamed for 
the relatively small expenditure of public money for the erection of public schools. 
Owing to several bequests by public-spirited citizens the city was enabled to erect many 
schools from these funds without adding to the public debt. The McDonogh fund supplied 
30 school buildings; the Howard gift furnished two excellently furnished primary build¬ 
ings; the Danneel legacy built two more. It is only in recent years that large demands 
have been made on the municipal government for schools. These demands have been 
readily met to the utmost ability of the city government. The municipal government 
has done all that it could in supplying necessary school buildings, but the rapid growth 
of the enrollment of pupils in the public schools, the shift of population outward from 
the business center and the need for replacing some of the old buildings have made the 
demand for new schools outrun the ability of the city to supply it. Now some 182 addi¬ 
tional rooms are needed to meet the new conditions. The school directors are happy to 
report that, with the financing of the $9,000,000 loan which was voted by the people for 
municipal purposes, these needs will be amply met, so that plans can be made at an early 
date to supply the school system with everything it demands. 





SOPHIE B. WRIGHT HIGH SCHOOL 



wr®^‘ r 'fi 

nHPP'imr'^li 

Mf: HNBgr 


' - ■ -■ ■ I -V. : " | , 1 




Page Forty-Three 











TULANE UNIVERSITY 

On St. Charles Avenue, in one of the choicest residence sections of New Orleans, 
and overlooking the green expanses of Audubon Park, stands an attractive group of gray 
stone buildings, embow r ered in foliage. This is Tulane University. The Tulane University 
of Louisiana—to use its formal name—was formerly the University of Louisiana. It 
dates back to the year 1834, when the Medical College of Louisiana (now the School of 
Medicine) was created. The present magnificent institution is really a development of 
that college, established eighty years ago. Its history through all these decades has been 
an interesting and inspiring record of growth and usefulness. The original medical insti¬ 
tution was expanded in 1847 by the creation of a law department, which is now the 
College of Law of the University. In that same year an effort was made to inaugurate 
an academic department, but the experiment proved unsatisfactory, and in 1859 this was 
closed. 

Mainly as a result of the Civil War, no effort was made to revive the academic 
department until 1876, nor was it till 1878 that its doors were reopened. In this state 
the University continued till 1884, when the receipt of the Tulane donation led to a 
change of name and the reorganization of the entire institution in the form which it still 
retains. In 1882 Paul Tulane, of Prineton, N. J., formerly a wealthy merchant of New 
Orleans, gave the greater part of his fortune, amounting to $1,000,000, to the Board of 
Administrators of the Tulane Educational Fund for the education of white youth in 
Louisiana. In 1884 this board took over the University of Louisiana, giving it Mr. 
Tulane’s name. Colonel Wm. Preston Johnston was selected as the first President of the 
institution as reorganized. 

In 1886 Mrs. Josephine L. Newcomb founded the H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial 
College for Women as a department of the University with gifts and bequests of more 
than $3,000,000. In 1906 the New Orleans Polyclinic became the Graduate School of 
Medicine, and in 1909 the New Orleans College of Dentistry became the School of 
Dentistry. In 1912 the School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and in 1914 the College 
of Commerce and Business Administration were organized. 

The University owns a tract of land over a mile in depth and with a frontage of 
about 600 feet on St. Charles Avenue. 

The University, in all its departments, is located in the City of New Orleans. The 
College of Arts and Sciences and Technology, the Graduate Department, the College of 
Law, the first and second years of the School of Medicine, the School of Pharmacy, and 
the first two years of the School of Dentistry are in St. Charles Avenue, opposite Audubon 


, rmiievp located in Washington Avenue, in one 

Park. The H Sophie Ne^omb Men o . ^ n ’ g be remove(1 to the Tulane University 

of the most attractive parts ot the c y, acres Students of the third and fourth 

campus, which now comprises about one hi school of Dentistry, the students 

years of the School of Medicine the third , f HyKiene an d Tropical Medicine 

of the Graduate School of Medicine and of the Schoo1 of Hygiene ana ' « 

are taught in the fSlutle?oTwkichat Sedy used 

in ( its 1 ms y tru 0 ctio e n gre The College of Commerce and Business 

courses in Gibson Hall and its night courses in the rooms of the New Orleans Association 
of Commerce which generously provides ample quarters. 

About one hundred acres of the tract on St. Charles Avenue have been set apart as a 

campus, and upon this the following buildings have been ^ n ^ p^ Sson Unit^d 
lareest of these structures, named in honor of General Randall Lee Gibson, ( rated 
States Senator and first President of the Board of Administrators; the Physical Labora¬ 
tory, the Richardson Chemical Building, a group of Engineering Buildings, consisting of 
the Experimental Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Mechanical Arts Laboratories 
and Drawing Rooms; the Richardson Memorial Building, the Academic and Richaidson 
Memorial Dormitories, the Stanley Thomas Hall, the Dining Hall, the Gymnasium, and 

the F. M. Tilton Memorial Library with its annex. 

The library building, with its annex, donated to the University by Mrs. Caroline 
Stannard Tilton as a memorial to her husband, is similar in architectural style to Gibson 
Hall. It affords ample space for the library and the Linton-Surget Art Collection. The 
Tilton collection of statues and other objects of art and the loan collection of art objects 
of Mrs. S. H. Kennedy. 

The upper floor of Gibson Hall contains the University Museum, with excellent 
departments of anthropology, zoology, botany, paleontology, geology and mineralogy. 
Here also is housed the Gustave Kohn collection of natural history of Louisiana (15,000 
specimens). 

Through the beneficence of the late Mr. Stanley C. Thomas, the College of Tech¬ 
nology now has a new building known as the Stanley O. Thomas Hall, a three-story, 
fireproof brick and reinforced concrete building, representing the most modern type of 
construction with special reference to heating, lighting and ventilating and other sanitary 
features. 

Immediately in the rear of the college campus are the athletic grounds, covering 
about six acres, with a large grand stand. Here the students can find daily exercise 
within convenient distance of their college duties. The climate allows outdoor exercise 
during the entire session. 


Page Forty-Four 






























W. B. THOMPSON, 

President, 

Board of Commissioners, Port of New Orleans. 


Our Great Harbor and Its Facilities 

The development of facilities essential to the expeditious handling of the rapidly- 
growing commerce of our great seaports has become a matter of serious concern in the 
United States. With the sole exception of New Orleans, the great ports of the country 
are practically controlled by private transportation corporations, or combinations of such 
corporations, which have pre-empted valuable water fronts and now hold and operate 
them to the disadvantage of all but themselves. 

Fortunately, New Orleans has never surrendered title to her harbor property; but, 
on the contrary, has preserved its ownership intact, wonderfully improving and develop¬ 
ing and, through the expenditure of vast sums of money, making it a most efficient 
municipal instrumentality, thus utilizing this common property for the benefit of a 
world commerce. Hence it is that this city, in the policy and practice of public owner¬ 
ship control and operation of its water front facilities is vastly ahead of any other 
American port In point of fact, it will require, as Mr. W. B. Thompson, the able 


President of the Board of Port Commissioners, expresses it, “years of effort and millions 
of money before these other ports can dislodge their oppressors, redeem their water 
line and place themselves in that status for operation and development in which our port 
stands to-day.” 

New Orleans is situated on the east bank of the Mississippi River, one hundred 
and ten miles from the terminus of South Pass Jetties at the Gulf of Mexico. It ranks 
second among the seaboard cities of the United States in the value of exports, and 
fourth in the value of imports; is also fourth as a "balanced port”. The harbor covers 
41.4 miles of river frontage in the Parishes of Orleans, Jefferson and St. Bernard. The 
important portion of the harbor extends a distance of some 14 miles in length, 
and in depth varies from 30 to 70 feet at the wharf line to a maximum depth in mid¬ 
stream of over 200 feet. The channels through the Gulf Passes have a depth sufficient 
to more than accommodate any existing or yet-to-be-constructed leviathan of the sea. 
These wonderful facilities are administered by a body know as “The Board of Commis¬ 
sioners of the Port of New Orleans”, which, although created by the State, ma> be 
regarded as a co-ordinate branch of the city government. The wharf and dock terminals, 
exclusive of more recent improvements, have cost to date $4,250,000. These improve¬ 
ments consist of five miles, or 3,641,000 square feet, of wharves, constructed of creosoted 
material. About three and one-half miles of these wharves are covered by steel sheds of 
the most durable and modern construction, and served by nearly three miles of paved 
roadways and approaches. 



MODERN WHARF—TOBACCO WAREHOUSE. 











ses8se8e®3e£eses88ese®®8sggs8®a8aes8ra8e®8es888®se5888ses8se88s8s8®8s888esea6®®£885s6®® £8s888se ®® a8ss8es8s88e ® 8es6 ®*®®®®| 


O. P. GEREN, 

Chairman, Finance Committee. 

Referring to the vast expansion and improvements generally on our water front, 
Mayor Behrman, in an address delivered in 1915 before the National Rivers and Harbors 
Congress, Washington, D. C., said: 

“In so far as my observations and knowledge of the subject enable me to speak, I 
have no hesitancy in saying that there is not another port in America so admirably 
equipped or more conveniently situated as the port of New Orleans to handle the com¬ 
merce that will move along the new routes of trade as they are sure to develop in the 
near future.” Already the second largest port in the United States, the fact that the 
volume of its business is steadily increasing is evidence that its facilities are commen¬ 
surate with every essential requirement. At a cost approximating $20,000,000 the 
Federal Government has deepened and otherwise improved the channel of the Mississippi 
from the city to the sea; has organized and maintained a quarantine service for the 
protection, not alone of New Orleans but of the entire Mississippi Valley, from the 
insidious effects of imported disease, which for many years had put a blight upon its 
business and its people; it has materially increased the stability of the city’s river 
frontage in the prevention of caving banks; has inaugurated here a branch office of the 
National Department of Commerce for the specific encouragement and development of 
New Orleans’ trade with the world, and is now at work opening an intercoastal canal, 
which, crossing the Mississippi River at New Orleans, will ultimately extend from Boston 
to the Rio Grande. 

W ith this valuable asset preserved to the people as a public heritage, the State of 
Louisiana, through its General Assembly, was asked to so amend its Constitution as to 
permit the issuance of bonds, the proceeds of which were to be utilized in the develop¬ 
ment of the property on a scale adequate to every requirement not only of the city’s 
but of the world’s progress in the years to come. The more effectually to bring this 
about, and the more readily to insure the accomplishment generally of the objects sought 
through this great work, the property was stricken from the assessment rolls, and thus 
relieved of the burden of taxation, was placed beyond the possible influence of private 


T. S. McCHESNEY. 

Treasurer and Assistant Secretary. 

monopolistic design. These unequalled facilities are wholly free to commerce, no charge 
whatever being imposed upon goods passing through and over these splendid untilities. 
The charge against the ships for dockage is reduced to a minimum—just sufficient to 
provide for the expense of operation and maintenance and to meet bond obligations. 

The members of the Board serve without financial compensation, and the most 
rigid economy is exercised in the administration of its affairs. It is clothed with much 
authority in the management of the property under its control, in addition to which it 
may expropriate property, wharves, build and operate warehouses, concentration plants, 
wharves and landings. Created by legislative enactment, the Dock Board assumed con¬ 
trol of the port’s property in 1901. Prior to this the city had been leasing its wharves— 
a system which proved unsatisfactory to the commerce of the port, was antiquated, 
inefficient and in e\ery respect inadequate. The wharves were mere temporary struc¬ 
tures, tarpaulins were substituted for sheds and there was an utter absence of equipment 
indispensible in the expeditious handling of commodities. Moreover, while the service 
and accommodations were imperfect and insufficient, the charges assessed against vessels 
were exorbitant and to the prejudice no less of the port than to home and foreign craft. 
At the time the Commission took charge it had no funds to draw from other than the 
revenues of the port. 

COMMERCE OF THE PORT. 

Seagoing The number and tonnage of vessels arriving at the Port of New Orleans 
for the year 1916, as shown in tabulated statement, was 1,934 vessels, 5,792,343 gross 
tons; 1,456 vessels, 4,510,164 gross tons, occupied the public docks, about 77.86 per cent 
ol the total tonnage. 

The dockage earned from these vessels was $339,662.23, an average of .0753 cents 
° rty ' tW0 V6SSelS ° f 98,481 gross tons - ^sured second dues amounting to 

During 1916, 1,262 vessels used the sheds, aggregating 3,171,029 tons, from which 
s edage amounting to $63,420.58 was earned, or an average of $50.25 per vessel. 


Page Forty-Six 




The public banana conveyors unloaded 458 vessels, handling a total of 15,728,144 
bunches of bananas, earning $35,537.14. 

1 nder the new system put into effect November 15, 1915, tolls were collected in the 
1 ear 1916 on 511,644 tons of inward and 1,534,326 tons of outward freight passing over the 
Public docks, amounting to $97,250.10. Twenty-four vessels paid demurrage amounting 
to $126. 

There were 1,694 arrivals of steamboats; 282 miscelaneous craft, consisting of 
boats, coal and gravel barges, tugs, etc., and 2,090 arrivals of luggers and gasoline launches 
engaged in the oyster, fish and vegetable trade. 

Charges are based upon the employment of harbor officers of the Board and services 
rendered in assigning ships to anchorage and berths; for supervising the shipping of the 
port, so as to prevent collisions and fires; for dredging in the harbor to prevent the form¬ 
ation of bars, and for lighting the river front, all in aid of navigation; also to pay a por¬ 
tion of the expenses of the operation of a tug in the port, furnished free of charge, to aid 
shipping in distress and to extinguish fires on all vessels and their cargoes, and for 
interest and maintenance. 

The Board also makes a charge of $1 for each copy of certificate issued for the 
inspection of hatches, surveys of cargoes, etc. The master of each vessel, however, is 
furnished, upon request, free of charge, one copy of all surveys upon their respective 
vessels or cargoes. 

The Commissioners further reserve the right to enter into contract with persons 



or corporations owning machinery, implements or devices, used upon the public wharves 
and landings for facilitating commerce of the port, and from which a profit is derived 
by such persons or corporations. Rates agreed upon are commensurate with the profits 
derived therefrom. 

The use of such machinery, implements and devices which may be owned by the 
Board of Commissioners may be required of all vessels, steamship agents and owners. 

The revenues for the year of 1916 amounted to $682,564.38; expenditures, $526,612.47, 
leaving a net gain ending December 31st, 1916, of $155,951.91. 

The first thing the new board did towards a practical solution of the rather com¬ 
plex problem with which it had to deal, after having assigned an efficient corps of 
engineers to determine the scope and character of the work possible of accomplishment, 
was to obtain from the various exchanges, shippers and others definite information as to 
their respective needs. Thus the Board was enabled to adopt almost at the very begin¬ 
ning a fixed policy in developing and improving the facilities of the port along modern 
and efficient lines, and expediting the work to that end. Referring to its plan of action 
in the continuous development, capabilities and conveniences, the Board said, in an 
interesting pamphlet upon this subject: 

“Ship-side warehouses and concentration plants for the handling and storage 
of cotton, coffee, lumber and other uniform commodities are to be erected, equipped 
with mechanical handling devices of the most economic pattern, sprinkler systems, 
etc. and operated by the Dock Board in the interest of all shippers and transportation 
lines alike. 

“Ship and boat-side storage is expected to prove of great advantage in reviving 
inland water traffic, and in anticipation thereof private capital is now being employed 
in the building of standard self-propelled steel barges, which are to engage in the 
river trade between New Orleans and the river-served cities of the valley. The use 
of these cheaply operated boats, in conjunction with standard and economic river-front 
terminal facilities and self-propelled lighters, has already begun to retire inland 
navigation in a wholesome way.’’ 

As a result of its investigations the Board found that the “through shipper” 
enjoyed some advantages over the “New Orleans Shipper”, and that the “New Orleans 
market”, was languishing in consequence. Handicapped in this manner, it was found 
that, no inconsiderable portion of the ports commerce used New Orleans as a port 
market of deposit. It was then determined that the most rational and essential thing 
to be done in the rapid unfolding of the Dock Board’s policy, was to make New Orleans 
a port market of deposits. This would embrace the vast area from Pittsburg to 
Chicago and as far West as Denver. And so it is that the work of augmenting the 
mammoth steel receiving and discharging sheds already built and in successful opera¬ 
tion that for miles line the river bank, is now being supplemented by a system of ware¬ 
houses, concentration and handling facilities of the most modern, efficient and economical 
construction, the most complete and in every particular the most perfect yet devised; 
and that great work, which has made the Port of New Orleans a model for every 
other port on this continent, is still going rapidly forward under the most intelligent, 
practical and far-seeing administrative direction. 

“Thus equipped”, continues the report of the Dock Board, "New Orleans will 
appeal to the owners of cotton as a market of deposit, and in this way the present-day 
practice of shipping the bulk of Europe’s supply of American cotton out of the country 
as fast as picked and baled is expected to be replaced by a more profitable and economic 
system of concentrating cotton at New Orleans, storing it inexpensively at ship’ side 
and selling it to Europe or to America mills as their need arises. With facillities 
available, the cotton grown in New Orleans’ legitimate territory, amounting to between 
5,000,000 and 6,000,000 bales annually, should pass to consumers in a regular monthly 


modern wharf—coffee landing. 






















88 


flow, rather than, as is now the case, so hurriedly in the fall and winter as to congest 
shipping facilities and so meagerly in the spring and summer as to in-adequately supply 
the boats, railroads and ships with tonnage.” 

One of the vital purposes of these warehouses and terminal, costing over 
$3,000,000, was, it was contended, to make this city a deposit market for cotton; a thing 
which has been more than accomplished since their construction. In the completion of 
these incalculably beneficial adjuncts to our harbor facilities, interior buyers are now 
able to ship cotton to New Orleans for storage in their warehouses, where the staple 
is held subject to order of the buyers, while planters are eqully advantaged in the same 
respect. The warehouses and terminal have a handling capacity of 2,000,000 bales of cot¬ 
ton annually. The buildings themselves cover an area of approximately fifty acres, and, 
including the trackage adjacent to the plant, the total area covered is approximately 
100 acres. The wharves are two-story re-enforced concrete, 2,000 feet in lenght and 180 
feet in width. The lower story is 16 feet 8 inches and the upper story 15 feet 8 inches 
in height. There are six warehouses, and, with the wharf sheds, have a normal capacity 
of more than 450,000 bales, and in emergency will accommodate fully 600,000 bales of 
cotton. In addition to the warehouses for the different classes of cotton there is an 
immense compress plant, with every modern attachment, insuring speed and efficiency, 
and in proximity to the consigned warehouses are large sorting platforms, on each side 
of which are two railroad tracks, depressed so a car floor will be level with the floors 
of the platforms or of the warehouses on the opposite side of the tracks. There has 
also been completed a contract for dredging the Mississippi and filling in of the site, 
involving the removal from the river and depositing on the land of approximately 


2,000,000 yards of earth, at a cost of $180,000. The area of the site thus acquired, 
together with the additional area made available by the filling, is ample for the accom¬ 
modation of warehouses, terminal trackage and dock facilities to handle a total business 
through the port of 3,500,000 bales of all classes of cotton per annum. 

The entire construction of the terminal, with the exception of the timber apron 
wharf, is of re-enforced concrete steel. The buildings are supported on creosoted pine 
piles and the wharf of re-enforced concrete on untreated pine piles driven in clusters. 
Before the design of the wharf and shed structure was finally adopted, the details of the 
latest type of such construction in New York, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and other ports 
in this country, as well as in Liverpool, Hamburg, Bremerhaven and Havre, abroad, were 
carefully and diligently considered by experts in this character of work. As a result, 
the general design of the wharf and sheds embodies the latest developments, the success 
of which has been demonstrated in their application elsewhere, with, of course, such 
modifications as best adapt them to our conditions. The depressed railroad tracks in 
the rear permit of unloading freight from cars practically within reach of the ship s 
tackle, while the tracks on the apron of the wharf allow of direct transfer from the car 
to ship, or vice versa. I might also mention as a matter of interest that constituting 
a part of the cotton handling and carrying system there are four and one-half miles of 
overhead and ground-level runways for the accommodation of trains composed of motor 
cars and trailers for the conveying of cotton from any one compartment to any other 
compartment. Large receiving and sorting yards are a part of the conveying and trans¬ 
portation equipment. The terminal yard trackage has a capacity of approximately 2,500 
cars, which will be sufficient to accommodate a daily movement of 1,000 loaded cars, 


88 

88 


88 




































tl a„ nmwa' /and T ,, r °'“ ‘’• O0 ° l ° 5 °'° 00 l)ales 0[ Tl >« appliances other 

of err,.?! r. ,8ne<i brwge " a,,es f<,r uie «* •^6 co„ sls t 

hlats ot liahtera , wh,r '' ront tor <nto ships or receives cotton from river 

side other annl'is/ “ WUh colltlml ous conveyors for cotton handling at the ship's 
ir ” l ' Se are automatlc grapplers attached to the cranes utilized 

' g ' loweri “8 coiton hales and mechanical devices for pulling or pushing hales 
of cotton from any point in tiers piled ten and fifteen bales higli. 

As an evidence of the substantial character of these improvements it might not 
be amiss to point to the fact that these warehouses have just stood the test of one of the 
greatest storms in the history of the world. With a barometer reading 28.11 and a wind 
\e ocit> of 120 miles an hour and a rainfall of nine inches in twenty-four hours, these 
structures stood without a dollar of damage, either to them or their equipment or the 
wetting of a single bale of cotton. 

The cost of the cotton warehouses and terminal, including the immense yards of 
the Public Belt Railroad, located on the site, is estimated at $3,500,000. In order to 
finance such a development the Dock Board, as it is familiarly called, had been author¬ 
ized by constitutional amendment, approved by the people of Louisiana, in 1910, to “erect 
and operate warehouses and other structures necessary for the commerce of the port”, 
and to that end issue bonds, which could be secured by mortgage on the warehouses and 
by the net receipts from the operation of the plant itself. Acting under this authoriza¬ 


OLD COTTON LANDING. 


MODERN WHARF—COTTON SHED. 

tion, the Board approved the issue of $3,000,000 forty-year 5 per cent bonds, which were 
purchased by three of our local banks, and the money deposited with the trustees May 1, 
1914. As a matter of fact, it is estimated that the reduction in the cost of handling and 
storage of cotton through the operation of these warehouses and terminal over previous 
rates will amount to 40 per cent. 

And the gigantic work still goes on. 

PUBLIC GRAIN ELEVATOR. 

The public grain elevator is situated on the river front at the head of Bellecastle 
Street, and on the tracks of the Public Belt Railroad, which, as stated elsewhere, is 
owned, controlled and operated by the City of New Orleans under direction of a Com¬ 
mission of citizens serving without compensation. Of this Commission the Mayor is 
President, and the Commissioner of Public Utilities of the City Council a member. 
Charges for making delivery to the public grain elevator are absorbed by the raiiroad 
making delivery to the Belt, which connects with all railroads entering the city, with 
our extensive system of State- wharves and with many large manufacturing and whole¬ 
sale establishments which have and are rapidly springing up along its entire route 

Vessels using the public grain elevator, wharf and kindred facilities are not sub¬ 
ject to any charges not incurred at the railroad terminals. Its facilities are at the 
service on absolutely equal terms to all railroads having their terminus in New Orleans. 
The original storage capacity of the Public Grain Elevator was 1,022,000 bushels, which 


Page Forty-Nine 

































MUNICIPAL COTTON WAREHOUSE 






<rM 










SS3 




’ ..-.I? ' A.*- 

m-mm 

He 

7 !j***5U! 

"-?,5!r -V 

W/M 1 

15 


Page Fifty 

























has now been increased to an additional 1,600,000 bushels, besides which there is space 
allotted for as much additional storage as the future business of the port may warrant. 
It might be mentioned as a matter of interest that the unloading capacity of this great 
public utility is 200,000 bushels per day from cars and 60,000 bushels per day from river 
barges or ships. The unloading capacity from barges and ships will probably be doubled 
by the time this book shall have left the hands of the printer. Loading to ships or river 
barges is done at the rate of 100,000 bushels per hour — all to one or as many as four 
vessels, simultaneously. 

Here are some of the special features in the equipment of the public grain elevator: 

Shipping Legs . 25,000 bushels per hour each 

Receiving Legs . . 25,000 

Utility Leg . lo’ouo 

Conveyor Gallery Shipping Belts . 25,000 

Receiving Conveyor Belts . 25,000 

Shipping Conveyor Belts under annex . 25,000 “ 

Transfer Conveyor Belts in Workhouses ... 25,000 

Dryer Conveyor Belt ... 20,000 

Unloading Sinks, with interlocking device, equipped with 

positive electrical control. .. . 2,000 bushels capacity each 

Fairbanks Registering Beam Type Hopper Scales . 2,000 

Morris Drier . 2,000 “ per hour 

Monitor Oat Clippers . 1,500 “ “ “ 

Monitor Separator. 3,500 “ “ “ 

Zelaney System to protect grain on store. 

Automatic sacking scales in elevator and on elevator wharf. 



STEAMSHIP LOADING SIMULTANEOUSLY FROM MODERN DOCKS AND LIGHTER 




STEAMSHIPS AT MODERN WHARF. 

The Pneumatic Conveyor System is used in unloading grain from river barges and 

ships. 

Electric power is used for the entire operation of the plant, and each unit is oper¬ 
ated independently. 

In addition, the plant is equipped with journal alarm system, rope strand signal 
system, telephones throughout plant and pneumatic tube from unloading shed to scale 
floor and foreman’s office. 

The Public Grain Elevator is absolutely fireproof and is equipped with an up-to-date 
dust-collecting system, and will have the reputation of being the cleanest elevator in the 
world. 

The necessity for the construction of such an elaborate plant has become especially 
apparent during the last five or six years, when the development of New Orleans as a 
great grain-exporting center was generally conceded. As an instance, it is mentioned 
that for the year ending June 30th, 1911, the export business at this port was 6 527 884 
bushels of grain, as compared with 53,863,383 for the year ending June, 1915, an increase 
of 725 per cent. The export elevators at New Orleans were practically all owned and 
operated by the Illinois Central and Texas & Pacific Railroads; and while these concerns 
were open to the use of other roads, the conditions of service to the latter were, in 
certain instances, more or less burdensome. With this handicap, the development of a 
large grain-hauling business in this direction was out of the question. Following a 
thorough investigation by the New Orleans Board of Trade, it was decided that the most 
effectual solution of this difficulty was the erection of a publicly-owned grain elevator 
to be located on the tracks of the New Orleans Belt Railroad, when it would be subject 
to use, on equal terms, of all the railroads entering the city. Thereupon the Dock Board, 


Page Fifty-One 































which had been authorized by the State to erect warehouses and other improvements 
necessary in the development of the business of the port, immediately undertook a study 
of all the conditions governing the grain trade, and authorized its engineers to prepare 
a comprehensive report upon the subject. At the same time negotiations were begun 
for financing the construction of such an elevator as would answer the purpose and 
afford the relief desired. Predicated upon the report of the engineers, and as a result 
of the thorough investigation made by the Dock Board, instructions were issued to 
prepare as promptly as possible detail plans and specifications for an elevator which 
would possess advantages over any other establishment of the kind then in service. 
Particularly would it be adapted to the needs of the Port of New Orleans: First, in the 
rapid handling, both in the receiving and shipping of grain; second, great flexibility in 
the distributing and conveying systems. It was to be built of steel and concrete and 
designed to do its work with thoroughness and dispatch. Its storage capacity would 
exceed a million bushels. It would be provided with shellers, cleaners, clippers, dryers; 
in fact, every device necessary to improve grain while in transit — as a matter of fact, the 
last word in elevator building. 

From a very recent statement made byMr. W. B. Thompson, President of the Board 
of Commissioners of the Port of New Orleans, much is to be learned relative to the 
facilities at present being provided and to be provided to accommodate “the tremendous 
volume of commerce which must logically move through this gateway from the great 
Mississippi Valley to the markets of the world, and from these markets back to the 
domestic centers of consumption’’. Says Mr. Thompson: 

“The publicly owned and operated port terminal and transshipping system of New 
Orleans as presently constituted represents a capital investment of approximately ten 
million dollars. The present equipment consists of over five miles of wharves, a cotton 
warehousing plant, with a capacity of 200,000 bales, and a grain elevator, with storage 
capacity of 1,000,000 bushels, constructed and operated by the State of Louisiana through 
its Board of Commissioners of the Port, all of which shipping and storage facilities are 
served by the Public Belt Railroad, which is a terminal switching system operated by 
the City of New Orleans through its Public Belt Railroad Commission, and which directly 
connects the public wharves and warehouse plants, as well as many private industries, 
■with every trunk railway line moving to this port. Based, as this port organization is, 
upon the principle of inalienable ownership by the people, and operation by the Govern¬ 
ment for the benefit of commerce and trade, and backed, as it is by the power and credit 
of the State and the City, it is obvious that the organization is susceptible to indefinite 
and unlimited expansion. 

“Recently the Board of Commissioners of the Port has, under authority vested by 
Constitutional Amendment, adopted an ordinance providing for the issuance of bonds 
to the amount of $25,000,000 for purposes of harbor improvement. Of this authorized 
issue 4V 2 per cent bonds to the amount of $4,000,000 have been sold. This money will be 
expended in the enlargement of the present warehousing and storage facilities and in the 


construction of new warehouse plants and other structures necessary to the commerce of 
the port. 

“The first item of new construction undertaken by the Board is an additional one 
million six hundred thousand-bushel storage annex to the Grain Elevator. Work has 
already been begun on this unit and is being pushed on the emergency basis. It is 
imperative that this annex shall be completed in time for the new crop movement. Not 
only will the improvement in question increase the grain business of New Orleans but 
it will be of material aid to the effort of the United States to supply its allies with food. 

“Work on the Cotton Warehouse wharf and Warehouse is being actively prose¬ 
cuted, with the assurance that this great structure will be in operation for the coming 
cotton crop. The need of greater storage capacity for the plant was strikingly demon- 
started during the past season. The Board has under consideration the plans for t'\o 
new storage units which will be available for the coming crop, and which, when com¬ 
pleted, will bring the total storage capacity of the plant up to 400,000 bales, which 
capacity will enable the plant under normal conditions to handle a million and a half 
bales during the season. Another improvement in the plant will be the installation of a 
high-density compression system, which will materially reduce the size of the bale, and 
will thus add to its value from the transportation standpoint in these and the coming 
days of scarce ocean tonnage. Already one high-density press has been installed and has 
been in operation about three months. Two additional high-density presses are now being- 
installed and will be ready for the new crop. 

“The improved facilities which have been supplied to the cotton and grain trade 
will be speedily extended so as to accommodate other lines of production, industry and 
commerce. The Board has under active consideration plans for furnishing the sugar 
and rice industries with appropriate marketing, storage and shipping facilities. The 
present facilities for assembling and exporting timber and oil are by no means adequate, 
hence development along these lines will be speedily inaugurated. The import trade in 
coffee and the import and export trade in general commodities will in the near future 
be supplied with ample facilities for storage and distribution. Finally the Board proposes 
to extend and improve the docks system and to supply the same with such machinery 
and devices as will increase its economic efficiency. 

It is to be expected that the prosecution of the aforementioned plans for increas¬ 
ing the storage and shipping facilities of our publicly owned terminal system will meet 
with opposition from pri\ate interests. Although the Board will not unnecessarily inter¬ 
fere with pi hate enterprise, still it will not be deterred by selfish complaints from doing 
its utmost to fulfill the manifest destiny of the port of New Orleans to be a dominate 
factor in the foreign commerce of the future. In line with this policy, the Board is not 
limiting its activity to independent effort, but is seeking co-operation with the Federal 
Authorities in the effort to accommodate the foreign trade requirements of the country 
at large.” 


Page Fifty-Two 


(Eransportatum 



Historical Sketch of the Building of the 

Louisville & Nashville Railroad 

Connecting New Orleans With the North and East 




IsJI 




HEN THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS of the “Pontcliartrain Railroad 
Company” was deliberating on the various phases of financing and 
constructing the proposed railroad from New Orleans to Lake Pont- 
ehartrain, it seriously considered, we are told, whether the passen¬ 
ger cars should have springs or whether the bodies should merely 
rest upon the axles. That was away back in 1825. And although 
the chronicler does not relate whether they got the springs or not, 
he does mention the more important fact that six years later, April, 
1831, the road was completed, and he qualifies that fact with the very singular distinc¬ 
tion of being the first completed railroad in the United States. 

While the good people of the quaint and picturesque City of New Orleans, with 
its hundred and thirteen Summers and its 46,000 souls, were enjoying the “delightful” 
rides to and from the Lake, and clicking toddy-glasses to the success of that bold 
undertaking, away up in old Kentucky a similar Board of the “Lexington & Ohio Rail¬ 
road Company” was discussing the question of using strips of iron, to be fastened on 
large limestone sills, for their road, which was authorized in January, 1830, to be built 
from Lexington to some point on the Ohio River. They decided upon this plan of 
track-making and began the road. Eventually, although the rock sills were finally sub¬ 
stituted by ordinary ties, the road was completed to Louisville, Ky. 

Here" we have two railroads, crude affairs indeed, yet creditably serving the 
objects of their enthusiastic and progressive builders. Both had come into existence 
near the same time, yet they were more than nine hundred miles apart. Between laj 
a vast domain of open wastes and primeval forests, a realm of boundless possibilities, 
wondrous in the natural fertility of its unfurrowed fields, fabulous in the sleeping 
bounties of its mineral hills. This country had not progressed like that adjacent 
to the water routes; it needed some free, active instrument of transportation to put 
it in closer communication with the great marts of trade, to make it blossom forth in 
rich abundance and yield to the world its varied fruits. 

Such a vision doubtless ■was born to the builders of the Louisville & Nashville 
Railroad In a splendid, far-reaching dream of the future, they perceived the latent 

richness of that broad ter¬ 
ritory and the great pros¬ 
perity that would result 
from its development. A 
brief review of their strug¬ 
gles to realize that vision 
should prove especially in¬ 
teresting because of the 
value its realization has 
been and is to the great 
South. 

The L. & N. in corpo¬ 
rate body, with a capital 
“soul” of $3,000,000, saw 
the light of day at Ken¬ 
tucky’s capital on March 5, 
1850. Its initial venture 
into the railroad field was 
April 13, 1853, when it ex¬ 
ecuted a contract for the 
construction of a 185-mile 
line from Louisville to 
Nashville. As Louisville 



RIGOLETS BRIDGE, L. & N. RAILROAD. 


was then strictly a river town, whose business was principally measured by its boat 
traffic, and Nashville a city of only 10,000 people, while between them stood a sparsely 
settled" country, with rugged hills that offered almost insuperable barriers to the work, 
this project, at best a speculative enterprise, was considered a bold undertaking in¬ 
deed. Nevertheless, after six years of effort in the face of undreamed difficulties 
scarcity of money generally and aggravated by the Crimean war, impatient and clam¬ 
oring contractors, shortage of provisions among the laborers due to an unprecedented 
drouth, the epidemic of cholera which decimated the forces and impeded the work 
this huge task was finally completed, but not until it became necessary for the com¬ 
pany to take the work from the contractors and let portions to the farmers along the 
way who assisted with their slaves in its construction. On November 1, 1859, the first 
through train was run to Nashville. With this and two other lines, altogether 269 
miles, the L. & N. rested on its oars until after the Civil War, although it assisted 
greatly in the handling of troops and munitions of war during those dismal days. 

But the great Southland was ever beckoning, and after that destructive conflict, 
when the desolate country was undergoing the pains of reconstruction, the L. & N. 
became aggressive and resolute in its efforts to respond. In April, 1871, it took over 
the contract for the construction of the South & North Alabama 'Railroad, from De¬ 
catur to Montgomery, 182 miles, chartered in February, 1854, but owing to many ob¬ 
stacles had never been completed. July 1, 1872, under the terms of a prior lease, it 
took possession of the Nashville & Decatur Railroad, which represented a consolida¬ 
tion in 1867 of the Tennessee & Alabama, the Central Southern and the Tennessee 
& Alabama Central roads, aggregating some 120 miles, all chartered in the early 
fifties and completed a few years late. The South & North was presently completed, 
and on September 29, 1872, put in operation, thus making a direct line of rail from the 
Ohio River to Montgomery, Alabama, a distance of 490 miles. 

The L. & N., penetrating the very heart of a rich agricultural and mineral coun¬ 
try, now became the chief instrument of communication between the Northwest 
and the South and Southwest. Settlers were fast migrating from the colder Northern 
latitudes, and as a result business communities rapidly built up, lands were cultivated, 
industries were started, mines were opened and a spirit of hopeful prosperity pre¬ 
vailed. But the essential object of the L. & N. was to reach the Gulf Coast, over a 
road under its own control; for by this central and direct route it could develop a 
large and extensive trade for the growing country, and divert from shipping via the 
Atlantic Coast the imports of sugar, coffee, spices and valuable woods, and the exports of, 
wheat, corn, cotton and coal, which this country and the South and Central Americas and’ 
the West Indies were exchanging. 

Yet it must rest a while and catch its second wind, so to speak. The acquisition 
and completion of the Nashville & Decatur and the South & North Alabama roads 
proved a heavy financial burden. The exorbitant interest which it assumed and the 
deteriorated condition of the properties it acquired imposed heavy expenditures of 
funds already greatly depleted by various unforeseen conditions that naturally attend 
a project of such magnitude, and particularly by the purchase of necessary additional 
rolling stock, the acquisition of the line to Memphis in September, 1871, and the gen¬ 
eral business depression following the panic of 1873. 

After a few years, however, when its new properties became largelv self-sustain¬ 
ing through the revival of an unprecedented business activity, the L & N directed 
its developing genius toward the Gulf, and on January 1, 1881, leased and later pur 
chased the Mobile & Montgomery Railway, a consolidation of the Alabama & 
Florida and the Mobile & Great Northern roads, 180 miles, incorporated in 1850 and 
18 56, respectively. On October 5, 1881, it purchased the historic Pontchartrain road 
and the New Orleans Mobile & Texas Railroad, the latter chartered in November. 
1856, as the New Orleans, Mobile & Chattanooga Railroad, and completed in 1870, 


Page Fifty-Four 

































after considerable difficulty. In constructing this road between New Orleans and 
Mobile experiments unique in railroad building had to be resorted to. Because of 
the low-lying salt marshes, close to the coast, teams could not be used for bringing 
the material from adjoining territory, and it was necessary to employ dredges to dig 
a canal parallel to the proposed roadbed, the excavated matter being used for the em¬ 
bankment. On account of the marshy, oozy nature of the excavated matter, great 
quantities of sandy soil were mixed with it, and in some places piles were driven 
parallel to the roadbed to prevent it from squeezing out laterally into the marshes and 
the canal whence it was obtained. The numerous lakes caused further difficulties, 
rendering much bridge and trestle work necessary. This division has five and one- 
half miles of bridge and trestle work, and as much is over deep water it was necessary 
in addition to concrete caissons to drive fascines of piles from fifty to a hundred feet 
into the bottom of the Gulf to make solid pillars. And as these timbers are subject 



Ma 


p of the Present Lines of the Louisville & Nashville Railroad. 



to the ravages of the toredo, a singular worm of the tropic seas which bores unpro¬ 
tected timber found in salt water, it became necessary to impregnate the timbers 

with creosote oil to 
prevent them from be¬ 
ing honey-combed. It is 
believed this line em¬ 
ployed the first creo- 
soted timber used in the 
United States. All . 
these unusual methods 
were expensive; the 
New Orleans Division 
has cost the L. & N. 

$79,000 per mile, and in 
addition requires an an¬ 
nual expenditure of 
some $15,000 per mile 
for its upkeep, which 
can be justified only by 
the value of the line as 
a direct route between 
the Southwest and all 
Southern and Eastern 
States. Beautiful Shell Road on the Gulf Coast- 

On November 1, 1881, The Playground of New Orleans 

the L. & N. bought , , , _ . . , T . 

the Louisville, Cincinnati & Lexington Railroad, which included the original Lexing¬ 
ton & Ohio road, thus actually bridging across that mighty distance between those 
pioneer roads, and, folding them into its corporate embrace, dedicated to the service of 
the South a direct and continuous line of rail from Cincinnati, Ohio, to New Orleans, La. 

That was a monumental achievement in those days, and required courage, eneigv 
and supreme determination. Yet the record of the L. & N. does not stop there. 
Through those splendid qualities of purpose that characterized its early builders, it has 
by subsequent acquisition and construction built up a System that to-day threads its 
five thousand miles of glistening steel into the nooks and corners of the Southland, and 
on account of its immense value as a developer of the South’s resources during the 
sixty-five years of its life, it stands acknowledged as her greatest commercial benefactor. 

In addition to its great system of tracks it has spent vast sums in improving, in¬ 
creasing, modernizing and rendering safer its facilities and equipment, and in every other 
respect has met the just requirements of the communities it serves. In the past twelve 
years with an increase of 37 per cent in its mileage it has increased its property invest¬ 
ment 84 per cent, or a round sum of $132,000,000. In twelve years it has spent $1,400,000 
to install a modern telephone system, and $2,000,000 for an interlocking and signal sys¬ 
tem, both to improve the service of its trains and secure the safety of the public. 
With an increase of 66 per cent in the value of its business it has authorized and in¬ 
curred expenditures for equipment in addition to that necessary to perpetuate it, 
amounting to 134 per cent increase, all to provide more improved standards, all-steel 
designs, safety appliances, and more comfortable and luxurious appointments to meet 
public desires. In tewlve years it has paid $2 M,801,939.21 to an average of o2,300 em¬ 
ployes, which is in addition to other large sums for labor in constructing double-tracks 
and extending new lines; and all this was paid to people of the South who naturally 
transfer the greater portion to the public through the various channels of trade, thus 
in this respect alone demonstrating the mutual interests of the South and the L. & N. 

The L & N. is of especial value to New Orleans, and it will become even more 
valuable as the full benefits of the opening of the Panama Canal and the growing friend¬ 
ship and trade relations between the two Americas attach greater interest and prom¬ 
inence to our Gulf ports. The location of its facilities in New Orleans has a marked 
advantage over the other roads. It offers superior freight service for the distribution 
of imports destined to the Southeastern and mid-Atlantic States, and a like inducement 
for shippers of exports from these localities to Southern countries. Its fast freight 
lines offer a rapid and dependable medium for the New Orleans vegetable growers to 

(Continued on Page Sixty-Six.) 



Page Fifty-Five 

































Its 8,000 Miles Now in the Service of New Orleans 


When, early in 1917, the New Orleans and Northeastern Railroad was included in 
the Southern Railway System, the result to New Orleans shippers and business men 
generally was as if a railroad with 8,000 miles of track, traversing the whole territory 
east of the Mississippi River and south of the Potomac and Ohio Rivers, had built a new 
line into New Orleans. 

With direct lines extending from New Orleans to Washington, Richmond and 
Norfolk, to the Ohio River at Cincinnati, Louisville, and Evansville, and to St. Louis, 
the Southern Railway System becomes the thoroughfare from New Orleans to connec¬ 
tions with lines reaching every point of the territory north of the Ohio and Potomac 
while its rails serve the principal Atlantic Ports and interior centers of the South. 

In addition to Norfolk, Charleston and Jacksonville on the Atlantic Coast are 
served by the Southern. Through the Chesapeake Steamship Company, it reaches 
Baltimore via both Richmond and Norfolk. 

The Southern also reaches the Gulf at Mobile ard the Mississippi at New Orleans, 
Memphis and East St. Louis. 

The advantage to New Orleans business men of having freight moved to and 
from all of these points under the direction of one management is apparent to anyone 
familiar with business conditions. 

Prior to the acquisition of the controlling stocks of the New Orleans and North¬ 
eastern, the Southern was the sole owner of the extensive terminals of the New Orleans 
Terminal Company, and these and the terminals of the Northeastern are now operated 
as a unit, giving the Southern Railway System splendid facilities for handling business 
moving thiough the port as well as business to and from the city proper. 

The export and import terminals at Chalmette and Port Chalmette are adequate 
for handling freight of every chracter between ships and cars. The freight terminals 
at Basin Street and Press Street offer ample facilities for efficient handling of both 
carload and less than carload business, while the tracks of the Southern in the City 
form a belt line, along which are admirable sites for the establishment of industries. 

Further iniprovement in the through freight service of the Southern was made on 
4pril 1st when new schedules were put in effect for solid trains from New Orleans to 


. ... nuin River and to Washington and Norfolk, in the 

Easr"connertln°'tra ns give efflcfent service to other outlying points and to interior 
S „«;„oateS™ the nfain lines. At ail important June.ion pomu: the yard opera,ton 
has been adiusted so as to eliminate delays, so that with freight shipped over tne 
Southern Railway System there is no loss of time due to transfers between yards, such 


S88BS88BS88B88883B88888888S6S8889888 


SOUTHERN RAILWAY SYSTEM 


as are inevitable when freight moves over a line composed of several railroads, each 
operated under a separate management. 

The passenger service of the Southern Railway System from New Orleans in¬ 
cludes through trains of the highest class to Cincinnati and to Washington and New 
York. The great resort section of Western North Carolina is reached bv the Southern, 
and is becoming more popular with New Orleans people every year. 

The Southern Railway System is not only big as to mileage and territory covered 
but its management s conception of its duty has been to make the railway not only an 
efficient carrier of the people of the South and their goods, but to make it also an 
effective instrument in the agricultural and industrial development of the section. 

The management of the Southern has considered its first duty to be to provide 
facilities for efficiently handling the growing business of the South. 

For some years the Southern has been pushing the construction of double track 
on its Washington-Atlanta line, this involving practicaly rebuilding it Early in April 
contracts were let for the last of this work. 

Gieat progress has been made in similar work on the line between New Orleans 
and Cincinnati. Contracts on the line were recently let for additional work of this 
character between Meridian and Birmingham, and provision has been made for securin' 3 
new capital for similar work between New Orleans and Meridian at a time when the 
investment market may be such as to make the sale of bonds advisable. 

While improving its lines the Southern has also given attention to the vitallv 
important matter of terminals and heavy expenditures have been made for work on this 

(Continued on Page Sixty-Five.) 


terminal depot, southern railway system. 


Page Fifty-Six 















































New Orleans Great Northern Railroad Co. 


land uneaMM ta'aa". „T. , a f°» th »' MMiy and commerce In the So,un¬ 

made in transnortalio r se, j 'on of the country. Tremendous investments have been 
dreams of on. , ,n u a ” sh,pp '" g - Heclamation projects far bevond the fondest 

harvesting o Jx crlL J T '“ taiMlp * »' p ns,ness and the 

records onlf to he hL ‘° rder ° f the <lay - Bapk have made 

bequeathed by theCvn S' T enS "" ,S T1 ' e leSaCy »' ie,ha «>' a »d poverty 

capital The N Iw%on b „ m " S ! V ? n Way tefore a wave °‘ p ™8ress and an influx of 
down the highway of prosperity “ d " er pop “ laUop ipspl ™<l. marches 

Wh ‘ lp 1 ““ “ ke “arriman and Hiil were realising their dream of empire in the 

1 r Zl 0t er 8Teat blulders were seein S th e possibilities in the South 
Some fifteen years ago Frank H. Goodyear, of Buffalo, New York, a leader in the 

Pearl RiveJ ^ & m&n ° f eXceptiona l visi °n, became interested in the 

,i!h/ f a Y ° L0U1Siana and Mississippi. With that almost supernatural fore- 
s ght of the American railroad man, which is the envy of the world, Goodyear conceived 
the idea of what is to-day the New Orleans Great Northern Railroad. The same tireless 
energy which characterized his life set in motion the plans for the building of the road 
Work was started in 1905, and on July 1, 1909, the first trains were operated into 
Jackson, Miss. Having as it does its terminus in the metropolis of the South and run¬ 
ning north to the capital of Mississippi, its 282 miles of heavy rail, long tangent roadbed 
fairly divides one of the richest sections in the Gulf States. 

Just as a chain is no stronger than its weakest link, so is a railroad no more 
prosperous than the country through which it passes. The Pearl River Valley, down 
which the New Orleans Great Northern Railroad runs its water-level line, is rich in 
natural resources Prosperous towns line the right of way and act as shipping points 
for bumper harvests of food products, produced in the adjacent countryside. The ideal 
climate and productive, warm soil make two and three crops a season possible. Cattle 
raising, with all-year grazing, has attracted many breeders of fine stock. Here, too is 
one of Nature’s most lavish gifts to man — the famous long-leaf pine belt of Louisiana 
and Mississippi. This section is noted the country over for the fine quality of its timber 
and the density of its growth. 

Two branch lines running to Folsom, Louisiana, and Tylertown, Mississippi, known 
as the “Shore Line” and the “Bogue Chitto Branch,” respectively, do much to widen the 
field of operation and cover a territory no less rich in natural resources and agriculture 
than the main line. 

On the Bogue Chitto Branch, near Isabel, Louisiana, is located the Bogue Chitto 
Stock Farm, comprising some 2600 acres. Here a big herd of registered and graded 
Herefords are being raised by the most modern methods. A large herd of registered 
horses, another of hogs and a small flock of sheep round out a model ranch. Hundreds 
of acres are under cultivation, and the feed raised thereon is stored in mammoth silos 
for consumption during the short winter season. The farm is doing much to promote 
interest in the raising of stock, and has many followers of its methods. 

The Shore Line, with its junction at North Slidell, touches at the thriving towns of 
Lacombe, Mandeville, Covington and Abita Springs, on the north shore of Lake Pontchar- 
train. The section world-renowned as the Ozone Belt. Authorities pronounce it one of the 
most healthful known. Many attractive resorts dot the shore. ^ 

Here, the summer-tired city dwellers find rest and recreation. Amongst the 
needle-carpeted woods nestle many lovely homes. The pine-laden air and artesian water 
are attractions that never tire. The cool summers and mild winters call many tourists 
from the North and East. Nearby a newly-organized corporation is building a part of 


the great wooden fleet with which America is to help her allies in the present crisis, and 
which will form the nucleus for our “after-the-war” merchant marine supremacy 

Just north of Rio, the junction point of the Bogue Chitto Branch, and in the very 
heart of the big pine woods, lies Bogalusa—“The Magic City.” Ten years ago the virgin 
forest had such a heavy stand over the present site of the town that the engineers who 
came to erect the plant of the Great Southern Lumber Company had to literally hue a 
clearing to erect their tents. Now, with a population of over twelve thousand, Bogalusa 
is one of, if not the most, progressive little cities in the South. Almost overnight it 
grew. The great saw mill was built, operators brought their families and erected homes. 
Soon the mill was the largest single unit in the world, with a capacity of one milion feet 
per day. 

The waste material from such a vast cutting attracted the attention of a paper 
mill. They erected a plant with a capacity of thirty-five tons per day, only to supplement 
it with another of one hundred and fifty tons. A box factory, also using waste material, 
was soon running, and is now shipping hundreds of cars of their product. A creosoting 
plant was added to the list of manufactories. Churches, schools and many fine stores 
were built. The progress of the city manifested itself in the erection of fine hotels, 
banks, a Young Men’s Christian Association, Young Women’s Christian Association and 
an up-to-date hospital, while a creamery and cold storage plant is being constructed. 

The thousands of acres being cut over by the lumber company are being converted 
into model truck and stock farms. Unique is Bogalusa: It was builded in its entirety 
with less lumber than stood in its natural state upon the site. Who will gainsav the 
fact that this is, indeed, a Magic City. 

Additional similar plants are located at Florenville, Louisiana just south of 
Bogalusa, and at Columbia, Miss. At Covington, Slidell and Pruden are located plants 

he cuto“e? Cds 6 Thu' .Trie” °“' turi,enl , ln V lC ' ,rom the 5 >“"' P5 a "» other warteon 

11 1 J d , T1 latt . er is a recent industry that bids fair to become excention- 

y Profitable, as it accomplishes the double purpose of clearing the land for farming 
as well as deriving a profit from the operation. 

Near the towns of Eagle, Sun and Price, Louisiana, and Condron Mississinni are 
large gravel deposits. These deposits will do much to further the building of good roads 
so needed by all rural communities in the South. S S °° d roa<ls ’ 

From Columbia north to Jackson, Mississippi, the New Orleans Great Northern 
Railroad makes its way through a trucking section second to none in the United States 
Great quantities of early vegetables are shipped from here to Northern and Easteni 
points the advantageous climate making it possible for them to arrive wellin advance 
of products from other sections, thus assuring the producers the market’s best prices 

x* + \ Co ™ ecti ™ at Wanilla, Mississippi, with the Mississippi Central Railroad make 
Natchez, Brookhaven and Hattiesburg, Mississippi, accessible: connections at Columbia 
with the Gulf & Ship Island puts the territory along the Gulf Coast and in the Southeast 
in easy reach, whUe at Jackson, Mississippi, the Illinois Central, YazoJ & Mississippi 
Valley Railroad and the Alabama & Vicksburg Railroad open up the Mississippi 
River towns and all points north, east and west; at Slidell, Louisiana, connection with 
lie Southern Railway System, and at New Orleans with diverging lin4s which assures 
the shipper, as well as the traveling public, the best of service to all points Close 
working arrangements with the various trunk lines are maintained at all times 

The policy of the New Orleans Great Northern Railroad has alwavs been one of 
faultless maintenance and consistent expansion. Nothing that would insure the safetv 
and convenience of its passengers or the expeditious movement of its freight has been 
overlooked. Each yearly report shows a substantial and continued growth that fulfil 
every expectation of its founders. 1 sro " tn tnat fulfills 



Page Fifty-Seven 



TRANS-MISSISSIPPI TERMINAL RAILROAD COMPANY 


Among the many notable achievements in 
the line of civic and industrial development 
wrought out during Mayor Behrman’s long 
tenure of office, perhaps none promise to be 
ot greater value to the City and Port of New 
Orleans or reflect greater credit on the 
Mayor’s far-sightedness and devotion to the 
welfare of his native city than the Trans- 
Mississippi Terminal Railroad Company’s 
splendid new freight and passenger termi¬ 
nals, completed and thrown open to the pub¬ 
lic in February, 1916, at a total cost of over 
four million dollars. Planned, begun and 
completed during Mayor Behrman’s third 
term of office, no one took greater interest 
in the successful carrying out of the elabo¬ 
rate plans drawn by the engineers and archi¬ 
tects than his Honor the Mayor, and it was 
largely through his earnest co-operation that 
those adverse conditions, which so large an 
undertaking was bound to encounter, were 



NEW PASSENGER DEPOT. 


overcome j and these magnificent terminals, 
serving as a center of concentration, as well 
as an outlet, for over 10,000 miles of railway, 
were completed and placed at the City s 
service. With their rails gridironing the 
State of Louisiana, and then reaching far out 
into the Central North, Middle West and 
Southwest, the two great systems owning 
the Terminal Company, namely, 

Missouri Pacific Railroad 

and the 

Texas & Pacific Railway 

gather up and pour into New Orleans 
through these magnificent terminals the 
products of a greater territory than any 
others system, or combination of systems, 
serving this port. 



Page Fifty-Eight 













































I he Illinois Central and Two Notable Events 


The New Orleans, Chicago, St. Louis “Panama Limited” of the Illinois Central. 


“Some day we will have to admit that New Orleans 
m a great metropolis for trade and commerce ” said 

Ue d “tT E'! P S St *" * Bl ei, 

,, lh ® . Natlon s Southern Gateway.” “Some 
da? the editorial continued, “we will have to talk 
about New Orleans in terms of bank clearings, income 
tax, imports and exports, forest, mine, farm and fac¬ 
tory productions. Some day we will have a lake-to- 
the-gulf canal, and New Orleans will be Chicago's 
seaport, and we will feel the kinship and familiaHty 
of close business intercourse.” Then after sneakinir 
in friendly spirit of a specific local matter, it went on 
to say of New Orleans in general that it “is the na¬ 
tion s southern gateway—that must be conceded The 
importance of that fact is going to be recognized in¬ 
creasingly New Orleans will not need the Mardi 
Gras to advertise it. The traffic of the country will 
fl0W i 111 riv ers of ever-growing volume, and 

wealth and population will multiply. New Orleans 
cannot help being great. If New Orleans wants to be 
great after the manner of modern cities and in the 
way that can be set forth in statistics, we suppose 
we should be glad and congratulate her.” Such gen¬ 
erous recognition of New Orleans’ greatness from the 

outside world cannot fail to be gratifying to its 
citizens and to its hosts of friends all over the 
country who became cognizant, long since, of 
the importance and real strength of the Cres¬ 
cent City. Many of these friends have been 
contributing agents in the development of New 
Orleans along commercial lines, and of them, 
none more so than the Illinois Central Railroad. 
In fact, it is entirely within the line of modesty 
to state that the Illinois Central and its pro¬ 
prietary line, the Yazoo and Mississippi Valley 
Railroad, have always been and still are, large 
factors in the commercial upbuilding of New 
Orleans. It has always been maintained by the 
management of these roads that the Crescent 
City is naturally the port of distribution for the 
great central valley of the country through and 
tributary to which the lines of the “Central 
Mississippi Valley Route” run; in recognition 
» °f which fact persistent effort is constantly 

being made by these roads for the development of traffic in this direc¬ 
tion. As an evidence of this thought, it is necessary but to mention 
the facilities that have been developed by the Illinois Central within 
the city limits of New Orleans; many of them made possible through 
the progressive administration of Mayor Behrman. Included in the 
facilities may be mentioned its large number of freight houses devoted 
to the shipment of oranges, lemons, rice, sugar, fresh meats, fruits, 
vegetables and bananas; the one devoted to the banana shipment being 
located on a wharf and having a large capacity for fruit cars into 
which the bananas are transferred direct from the steamer, and im¬ 
mediately upon being loaded are sent on their way toward the north 
as fast manifest freight. Facilities for handling cotton are fully com¬ 
mensurate with the large business done in that staple, and the river 
frontage, with wharves accessible to the Illinois Central tracks, which 
are used in connection with the exports, covers the extent of about 
three and one-half miles and includes proper sheds and houses for the 
efficient handling of timber, grain and other merchandise. The Central 


An Expert Ladies’ Maid Is Carried on the 
Panama Limited. 


The Obeservation Platform. 


Mississippi Valley’s terminal yards at New Orleans 
has a storage capacity of eight thousand cars, while 
its present elevator capacity for handling grain is 
eight hundred cars daily. It has ample provision for 
the rapidly growing business of local shippers, and 
finally, for vast amounts of corn that are exported 
through the port the company has erected with ac¬ 
companying docks, the Stuyvesant Docks elevators, 
with their accompanying roofed wharves, freight 
houses and warehouses. 

But even greater than all this, which, in a way. is 
what may be called of “local” nature, are the unsur¬ 
passed and vast traffic facilities for carrying the 
products of the world from and to New Orleans to 
and from all parts of the country. Many notable 
achievements have been made by the Central in the 
matter of linking with efficient passenger and freight 
train service the great southern metropolis of New 
Orleans with the principal business centers of the 
rest of the country. But this latest of these achieve¬ 
ments is the inauguration of the “Panama Limited” 
on November 16th, 1916. Its record for being on time 
ever since, and its popularity with the traveling pub- 

, , lic from the day of its first run to the present, has 

made it one of two notable events in the his¬ 
tory of New Orleans, the other event being 
the progressive administration of Mayor 
Martin Behrman. 

In brief, it may be said of the Panama 
Limited that it is a train inaugurated as a 
most important factor in the upbuilding of 
commercial and social relations betweer the 
cities of New Orleans, Memphis, St. Louis 
and Chicago, as well as the vast territory 
tributary thereto; and that it is a no-extra¬ 
fare train, making the run between New Or¬ 
leans and Chicago in twenty-three hours, and 
between New Orleans and St. Louis in nine¬ 
teen hours. It was specially built from en¬ 
gine pilot to observation platform for the 
fast service it performs; it is all steel 
throughout and electric lighted, and incor¬ 
porated in its equipment are the latest 
thoughts in matters of large and small de¬ 
tails for safety, comfort and convenience. In decorative style it is in 
harmony with the refined taste of the day; and as a whole the “Panama 
Limited is the peer of any limited train in the country. Its equipment 
consists of a buffet car, a dining car. drawing-room sleeping car, and a 
composite sleeping car containing four compartments, two drawing 
rooms and a library and observation section. In this last, the composite 
car, a drawing room and compartment or two or more compartments 
may be used en suite. Included in the conveniences of the train is a 
barber shop, shower bath, lady’s maid (manicuring, hair dressing, etc ) 

New Orlean e s. an telephone service before departure from Chicago and 

The departing and arriving time at its terminals is such as to break 
the usual monotony of a long-distance run, and it is a common remark 
ot patrons on reaching their destination that in all their experience of 

Panama Tdmited. ^ h ° UrS ^ t0 SUP ^ S ° quickly as 011 th * 


The Barber’s Apartment Is Up to Date. 


Page Fifty-Nine 












































SOUTHERN PACIFIC LINES 

The Louisiana Lines of the Southern Pacific Lines have for many years been in¬ 
dissolubly connected and identified with the development and commercial upbuilding of 
the City of New Orleans. 

It was sixty-four years since that the citizens of the Crescent City were apprised 
by the then daily press, the “Picayune,” that the first train of the “Opelousas & Western 
Railroad” would operate into the territory west of New Orleans, on the first leg of the 
proposed development into the country of the Attakapas, afterwards made famous by 
the American poet, Longfellow', in his immortal story of “Hiawatha” as the “Land of 
Evangeline.” 

It was a memorable day in the history of the city in the big bend of the Mississippi 
when the initial trip over the Opelousas & Western announced the opening of the new 
trade territory west of the great yellow river. It meant the blazing of a trail into a 
country almost inaccessible, except by portage through the alluvial forests of cypress 
and gum, and through a section of swamps and quaking prairies, which drainage had 
not then made available for the high-class agriculture which to-day characterizes the 
route of the now Southern Pacilc Lines as it runs into the sunset and into the lands of 
California and of the great States lying intermediate between the Pacific Coast and 
Louisiana. 

The organization of the Morgan’s Louisiana & Texas Railroad & Steamship Com¬ 
pany took place in March, 1878, this company taking over the Opelousas & Western 
Railroad. The western terminus of the road was at the little town of Brashear, later 
changed to Morgan City, on the east bank of the giant Atchafalaya River, eighty miles 
west of New Orleans. Connection was made with Texas and the West by means of a 
fleet of steamers plying between the terminus at Morgan City and the ports of Texas. 
These ports, until the gradual termination of steamer traffic, due to the building of the 
Morgan road directly into the West, were Galveston. Rockport, Indianola, Port Isabel 
and Houston. The fleet was composed of a line of sidewheel steamers, all of which are 
now either at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico or otherwise destroyed. Up to 1879 
several of the ships were very attractively equipped and formed practically the only 
convenient means of communication between New Orleans, via Morgan City, ana the 
West. Cf this the ship “Gussie” fired the first gun in the Spanish-America war. The 
others, “Josephine”, “I. C. Harris”, “Whitney”, “Morgan”, “St. Mary”, “Harlan”, 
“Hutchinson", City of Norfolk”, “Austin”, long since ended their careers through the 
ordinary vicissitudes of age and operation. The smaller ships, as they disappeared, 
were replaced by larger and more modern vessels, establihed in other routes, and to-day 
the Southern Pacific steamers plying between New Orleans and New York are among 
the best in the world, and are possibly the finest coastwise steamers in this country. 

The Southern Pacific Lines at New Orleans is one of the fundamental factors in 
the commerce of this city. It traverses the wonderful alluvial delta of the Mississippi 
and Atchafalaya Rivers, from which comes much of the sugar and practically all of the 
rice grown in the State of Louisiana. It places in direct and easy touch the highly- 
developed sections of the Teche, Opelousas, Vermilion and Calcasieu districts. It 
diverges from its main line at Lafayette and branches into the Red River Valley at 
Alexandria. South from New Iberia it reaches and. brings into production the wonderful 
salt mines at Avery’s and Week's Islands—the most unique salt deposits in America. 

Also at Lafayette it diverges north to Baton Rouge, connecting with the Illinois 
Central at that point. From Lafayette, also, it ramifies the most productive and oldest- 
settled portions of the Opelousas prairies, many quaint and thriving cities and communi¬ 
ties being located along the line. 

The Line owns in New Orleans and immediately across the river much valuable 
terminal property and facilities. It has a complete official, traffic and operating organi¬ 
zation with general offices in New Orleans. It operates into and out of that city ten 
splendid passenger trains daily, four of them being transcontinental trains between this 
city and San Francisco, the others serving all local stations within the State and many 
in the State of Texas. 

All-steel trains are a feature of daily operation, while automatic electric block 
signals, ninety-pound steel rails, heavy gravel ballast and oil-burning locomotives com¬ 
bine to make the Southern Pacific Lines the peer of any road in America. A splendid 
dining car service is a prominent feature of all through trains, and all passenger equip¬ 
ment is thoroughly modern and up to date. 


Alabama & \ lcksburg Railway Company 
Vicksburg, Shreveport & Pacific Ry. Co. 

“VICKSBURG ROUTE” 

Although the Alabama & Vicksburg and the Vicksburg, Shreveport & Pacific 
Railway Companies, commonly known as the “Vicksburg Roll t e - are not terminal lines 
in New Orleans, they are, however, so closely connected with New Orleans by the fol¬ 
lowing railroads: , . ... ... 

Southern Railway System (New Orleans & Northeastern), at Meridian, Miss. 

New Orleans Great Northern and Illinois Central Railroads at Jackson, Miss. 

Yazoo & Mississippi Valley Railroad, at Vicksburg, Miss. 

Missouri Pacific and Texas & Pacific Railways, at Tallulah and Monroe, La. 
Louisiana Railway & Navigation Company and Texas & Pacific Railways, at 
Shreveport, 

that they are a most important factor in distribution of merchandise and other traffic 
to and from New Orleans, especially to points in Mississippi and North Louisiana, tribu¬ 
tary to New Orleans, and superior freight service is maintained betweeen these points 
and adiacent territory. 



The passenger service of the Vicksburg Route includes through sleeping car 
service and modern day coaches to Birmingham, Atlanta, Chattanooga, Cincinnati, 
Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York, and through trains are operated to 
Atlanta in connection with the Southern Railway System, with dining cars serving all 
meals en route. 

Through sleeping cars are operated between Monroe and New Orleans, via Jackson 
and Illinois Central, which is a great convenience to the people in North Louisiana and 
Mississippi who have occasion to visit New Orleans. 

, " riie Vicksbur e Route maintains their executive and general offices in New Orleans. 
In addition to the officers of the road being located in this city, several hundred clerks 
and employees are given employment and reside here with their families. 

\\ ith the possible exception of one other road, they employ more people in their 
general offices than any initial line entering the city. 

m l ,ntr! 1 L™! 1 i aSe tI le ! t 'iV ,ery much interest ed in the upbuilding of that section of the 
' through which it traverses, and many improvements are constantly being made 
which enables the road to handle the increased business with the greatest ease 

CreBCe„S 1 CiwTth“ d reSie°re e r S e. are a ‘ S ° Srea " y lnterested in th « o. the 


Page Sixty 
































NEW ORLEANS RAILWAY 

The New Orleans Railway and Light Company is essentially a public utility 
corporation, assembling together the various lines of street railway, and manufacturing 
and dispensing electrical energy and gas. 

Public utilities is work performed by communities or corporations for the essen¬ 
tial benefit of the people. In all communities quasi-public corporations are formed for 
the purpose of giving the people the greatest comforts and conveniences at the smallest 
cost possible at the same time deriving sufficient revenue and gain to be reimbursed 
for the cost of operation and giving to those who furnish the capital invested and aid 
in development of these various plants a fair rate of interest. Organizations of this 
kind should be fostered and encouraged, for the people derive the greatest benefit and 
good from them. Fair treatment for these corporations by the community with whom 
they are constantly in touch means a stimulant to their progress and of the city’s 
industrial development and growth. Unfair treatment will either drive them away 
or reduce their efficiency. Were it not for outside capital brought into the City, we 
would be ranked as an undeveloped territory, and neither transportation conveniences, 
benefits and industrial progress would have been possible 

The advent of outside capital should deter criticism against it for having faith 
enough in the fututre to come into any community. They should be encouraged to do 
so in a legitimate way, for the introduction of large capital — large amount of expendi¬ 
tures in these various plants will perforce bring forth much happiness and prosperity 
that will be enjoyed by all those in the whole community. The Railway and Light 
Company is a huge corporation, always has regarded criticism as constructive, and it 
has always met it with favor; complaints are not unwelcome, for upon receipt of any 
criticism the cause is immediately ascertained by the proper official and every reasonable 
effort is made to correct or to remove it. This corporation, operating the gas, electrical 
and street railway systems is always glad to receive complaints of any kind with a view 
to correcting the same. 

Traction Companies afford quick transit from one section of the City to another 
at a small rate of fare. Its introduction and construction is not only beneficial to the 
person of moderate means and bringing within the reach lands of smaller price than 
in the center of the city, but prove a great boon by moving them from the congested 


AND LIGHT COMPANY 

districts to a zone of health. Their improvements develop these lands, which, otherwise, 
remain idle, and the City is greatly benefited by increased revenues in the shape of 
taxes from the development of these lands, which soon become very valuable. The 
various lines of the New Orleans Railway and Light Company radiate through every 
portion of the City and give easy access to every park, to every place of public im¬ 


portance, to every resort, and make it of great benefit to the people, for, with the 
system of transfers inaugurated by the Company, additional facilities are afforded 
wuich otherwise would not nave Deen oDtained. n>eit lines have been cieated encircling 
the entire city, giving not only great accessibility to every section but affording means 
ot showing to strangers the most beautiful, quaint and historical portions of the city. 
The advent of transfers has in reality reduced the rate of fare, enabling them to reach 
these remote sections with no increased charge. The Company has to-day 218 miles 
of single track and 584 motor passenger cars to operate upon these tracks and give these 
facilities. This method gives employment to over 1800 men, to aid them in maintining 
and supporting their families, and the maintenance, the care and rehabilitation of these 
cars, tracks and transmission lines are constantly going on. Additional extensions are 
constantly made at considerable expense, which always redounds to the interest of the 
people. In order to show the magnitude of the public travel, there were carried in 1916 
87,680,288 revenue passengers and 25,173,015 transfers, making a total of 112,853,303 
passengers that were carried to their various places of employment, their homes, etc. 
The establishment of the Spanish Fort has given to those who remain in the city in the 
summer and are unable to leave a source of enjoyment which otherwise they would 
have been deprived of. The benefits of this park, the music and the various concessions 
afford an opportunity to the people to spend a pleasant evening on the shores of that 
beautiful Lake Pontchartrain. The park is shady and offers shelter, and no better place 
can be had for a day’s outing. 

ELECTRICITY. 

The electrical branch of the service is a great representative of progress. It 
is the advent of civilization; it is a power, although in its infancy, that has lessened very 
much the burden of mankind. It is a great system of public utility. It provides lighting 
of greater brilliancy, it possesses power of valuable assistance to manufacturers, it 
cheapens the cost of illumination. It has been applied to vehicles, trucks, vans and 
autos, increasing their usefulness and doing away with the cumbersome method of 
using animals, and all this is done in a better way and at a lower cost. In the use of 
machinery it has lessened the space of location and cut down the cost of operation. 

(Continued on Page Sixty-Six.) 


























Cuyamel Fruit 
Company 

Planters—Importers—Distributors 



The largest single industry in Central America is the cultivation and exportation 
of bananas and represents investments of many millions of dollars. The Cuyamel Fruit 
Company is an organization devoted exclusively to the production and importation of 
bananas, and has extensive plantations near Cuyamel, Spanish Honduras, where the main 
offices, shops, etc., are located One hundred miles of main line and branch railroad 
are operated to bring the fruit to the port of Omoa, and a fleet of steamships, on a semi- 
vveeklv schedule, for its importation into the United States, through the port of New 
Orleans, where it is loaded into cars and distributed, by the various selling agents, 
throughout the United States and Canada. 


Kerr Steamship Company 

Among the highly successful enterprises which have grown up from the war condi¬ 
tions and the general increase in shipping at New Orleans is the Kerr Steamship Line of 
New York and New Orleans, which does a large part of its business through New Orleans. 
The Kerr Line is a development of the business of H. F. Kerr, of New York, one of 
the best-known freight-forgarding agents of the North Atlantic Seaboard, and its great 
success both at New York and New Orleans is due to the keen business acumen of the 
founder. Mr. Kerr was one of those who first foresaw' the great boom in steamship 
business and the big demand for tonnage, and he prepared himself for the emergency. 
He first acquired a controlling interest in the Caribbean and Southern Steamship Lines, 
which was formed primarily to look after the transportation of sisal, or Mexican hemp, 
from Progreso and the Peninsular district of Yucatan to New Orleans and New York, 
This development was the result of a reciprocal trade between New Orleans and Yucatan 
cities subsequent to the arrangement for a credit loan of $10,000,000 to be made by a 
syndicate of New Orleans banks to the sisal planters of Yucatan through an organization 
known as the Regulating Marketting Commission for Henequen, or sisal, of Yucatan. 
Through this means New Orleans became the largest American importing point for sisal 
in bales and a reciprocal trade in various kinds of machinery, supplies, drugs, cotton 
goods, fuels, foods, grain and various other commodities, which was estimated to amount 
to some $12,000,000 per annum, developed. It was to handle this business that the 
Caribbean and Southern Steamship Company was formed. At one time it operated some¬ 
thing like six steamships a week loaded with sisal bales on the up trip and the merchan¬ 
dise from various New Orleans firms for return cargo. 

The success of the Kerr Line became so marked that its ambitious founder began 
to acquire ships by sale or charter to operate in all parts of the world. The greater part 
of its operations were specialized in the Caribbean territory and the West Indies, and 
as business increased Mr. Kerr and his associates absorbed the old Caribbean and 
Southern Steamship Company and began some months ago to operate its ships under the 
name and flag of the Kerr Steamship Line, and also looked after the business of the 
several ships owned by the Caribbean and Southern and a line of chartered boats obtained 
to haul surplus henequen freighted to market or storage here from Yucatan ports. Mr. 
Cowley was continued as New Orleans manager of the Kerr Line, and he became active 
in promoting the trade between New Orleass and the tropics. The work of the Kerr Line 
in this development of business has been remarkable in its effect on the population of 
New Orleans. Through the commencement of commercial relations between New Orleans 
and Mexican ports, for instance, numbers of prominent Mexicans have brought their 
families up to New Orleans to live for extended periods, and their coming has resulted in 
the spending of large sums with the local merchants for clothing, supplies, luxuries of 
all kinds, automobiles, machinery for the operation of plantations, stock of merchandise 
for commissaries on farms, drugs, chemicals, staple groceries, leather goods sporting 
goods; in short, everything which can be utilized in the business of a people who depend 
on a neighboring country for practically everything they eat, wear and use. The Kerr 
Line, through the operation of its steamers, has fostered this trade and made New 
Orleans one of the leading ports for Mexican exports and imports in the world Mexican 
business men of ability have come here to engage in the business of supplying the wants 
of their fellow-countrymen, and several large importing and exporting firms have thus 
been founded. The Kerr steamers make several sailings a week from New Orleans 
according to the number of bales of sisal booked for the upbound cargoes. With each 
return cargo the vessel is loaded down with general merchandise of all kinds, and not 
infrequently the aggregate values of these consignments are in excess of $500 000 The 
operations have been remarkably successful and free from serious accident to’the shiDs 
or their crews. The vessels are of large capacity, and are kept up to a standard of fitness 
which makes them attractive to merchants who desire to ship goods for import and 
export which wil arrive in a good, marketable condition and as free from claims for 
damage as possible. 6 









Bluefields Fruit and Steamship Company 

ljanan^'lnd^thP^tr' 1 ' 611 w 6 Amerlcan l,eo l jle we re first learning of the value of the 
banana and other tropical fruits as food, the Bluefields Steamship Company was formed 

emr ^inTnf h ° f y iumber of the snial 'er companies engaged in the raising and 

e portation ot bananas and plantains from Nicaragua. Steamships were operated with 

rrothtTn 1 1 fb r ? bU ! and N6W ° rleanS ’ aUd th0Usands of bunches of luscious fruits 
oug t into the Gulf ports to be distributed throughout the markets of the country. The 

company prospered for a number of years and acquired holdings along the Escondido or 
Bluefields River, in Nicaragua, which were of immense value. At one time it is estimated 
that this company possessed over 80,000 acres of the best banana lands in the world, 
bordering the fertile lands of the Escondido, Mico, Rama and Cama Rivers. Hundreds 
ol employees were kept at work, and the company soon became a powerful factor in the 
business and politics of the country. Its managers negotiated a loan of $5,000,000 with 
the Ethelbuiger syndicate of English and Dutch bankers, and for this were given by the 
then Dictator, General Jose Santos Zelaya, an exclusive right to the navigation of the 
Escondido River and its tributaries. The fall of the Zelaya regime and the opposition of 
various planters led to its downfall, and sensational suits were filed in the Federal courts 
of the United States by the stockholders against the United Fruit Company for alleged 
manipulations which were said to have ruined the company. These were tried at 
Philadelphia, and the United Fruit Company was acquitted. The company’s assets were 
sold at a received’s sale, being bought by the Bluefields Fruit and Steamship Company, 
an enterprise formed by Victor Camors, of New Orleans, and thus far the new company 
has had remarkable success. Mr. Camors formed the Bluefields Fruit and Steamship 
Company and became its President. Charles de Lerno is Vice President and General 
Manager, and A. B. Orr, a veteran banana man of Nicaragua and Mobile, is the Treasurer. 
JJnder the w’^e administration of President Camors the company has commenced to raise 
cattle on an extensive scale, and has imported a number of fine bulls into the country 
along the Bluefields River to grade up the native stock. 


New Orleans Dry Dock & Ship Building Co. 

Among the most important industries of the city, and certainly one of prime 
significance to the maritime supremacy of New Orleans is the New Orleans Dry Dock 
and Shipbuilding Company, of which Mr. Pearl Wight is the President. The enterprise 
is equipped to take care of every class of shipbuilding and repair work, and is equipped 
with two large dry docks which are capable of handling any vessel which comes into the 

New Orleans harbor up to 5,000 tons gross capacity. In addition there is a marine ways, 

at which ships of large tonnage have been built throughout, and a large machine shop 
and material yards adjoining. 

The corporation has been remarkably successful since its foundation, and the 
demands for its services have forced it to make large improvements during the past few 
years. Dry Dock No. 1 of the plant can handle a ship 370 feet long and up to a capacity 
of 5,000 tons. Dry Dock No. 2 is equipped to handle ships or other vessels up to 2,000 

tons capacity, and can handle any vessel up to 250 feet in length. This dry dock is 

especially suitable for the building and repairing of steamboats, and there is rarely a 
time when some steamboat or barge is not on the ways under construction or repair. The 
marine ways also has been busy continuously for several years, and have every shipbuild¬ 
ing facility in the country, and numbers of wooden ships, as well as steel hulls, have been 
rebuilt or'rehabilitated on them. The shipyard engine and boiler works is one of the 
most complete in the country, and the shipwrights and caulkers employed, as well as all 
other mechanics and foremen, are the most expert to be had in their lines. A special 
corps of expert marine engineers and draftsmen is also employed, and ship or other 
vessel plans can be furnished at all times. 

The officers of the company are among the best-known business men of New 
Orleans or the South. Pearl Wight, President; Geo. A. Hero, First Vice President; 
Ira E. Wight, Second Vice President; Morris Stern, Treasurer; J. D. O’Keefe, Secretary, 
with offices at 1403 Whitney Bank Building. 


M. C. Sins & Company 

The rapid growth of a business institution which may be traced to some one 
individual, an organizer of high-speed, high-powered, quick-thinking and untiring working 
power, is well illustrated in the firm of M. C. Sins & Co., freight forwarding brokers 
of the Hennen Building, at New Orleans. Mr. Sins is just that kind of an individual, and 
he has built up his business in a manner which has been surprising to the old heads in 
the freight-forwarding business of the Gulf and South Atlantic States. Though but 
twenty-eight years of age, Mr. Sins has created an institution in the freight-forwarding 
business which extends from the Atlantic to the Pacfic Oceans and from the Gulf to 
Canada. The general offices of M. C. Sins & Co. are at New Orleans, of which Mr. Sins, 
a native, is the founder. In that city Mr. Sins has the reputation of being a hustling 
youngster who never lets any grass grow under his feet when it comes to making a 
booking or chartering a vessel to fulfill the wishes of a principal. 

Mr. Sins got his early training in the best of all schools—the practical railroad 
office. He acquired a wide knowledge of rates and conditions in the Gulf and South 
Atlantic, and just before the beginning of the European war he polished off that knowl¬ 
edge by several years’ experience as the chief clerk in the largest freight-forwarding 
office in the South, that of J. H. W. Steele & Co. This gave him the foundation that he 
wanted, and his natural good sense and conservative hustling took him the rest of the 
way. There was all the chance in the world for a hustler during the first two years of 
the war, and Mr. Sins proved himself fully equal to his opportunities. He specialized 
in the booking of cotton, oil and flour, and nothing in the shape of a freight contract was 
too big for him to undertake. He delivered the goods, too, which made him all the more 
solid with his principals, so that when he went back for more business it was there for 
him in chunks. 

Mr. Sins is know as “Mike” among the freight brokers and the shipping trade in 
New Orleans, and as “Mike” he is affectionately known by the clerks and employees of 
his offices throughout the country. He is regarded as one of the best-posted ocean rate 
men in the South. 


United Fruit Company 

Among the factors of greatest importance in the upbuilding of the trade of New 
Orleans with Hispano-American countries, none has assumed greater prominence than 
that of the United Fruit Company. This company has made New Orleans the leading 
banana-importing center of the world, handling something over 15,000,000 stems of fruit 
annually by means of lines of passenger and refrigerated steamers making almost daily 
voyages to various tropical ports in Honduras, Mexico, Guatemala, Cuba, Jamaica, Costa 
Rica, Panama and Nicaragua. The freight service of the United Fruit Companv’out of 
New Orleans is the most reliable connection of New Orleans and Mississippi Valley 
States business men with Latin America, and has been built up from small tonnage to 
ships carrying 5,000 tons net capacity. Excellent passenger accommodations for tourist 
traffic to Cuba and all parts of Central and South America are also afforded, and good 
hotels have been erected to give the passengers first-class accommodations. 


W. R. Grace & Company 

When enterprise and progress in Latin-American commercial development are 
mentioned the name of W. R. Grace & Co. comes first to mind; for this enterprise has 
been the pathfinder of American commercialism in all Hispano-American countries. And 
not only that its branches extend to every important commercial center of the globe, 
from Canada to the farthest point in Argentine and Chile, from London to Petrograd 
in Africa, in India and in the far-off Orient, all form parts of a chain of Grace houses! 
embracing over two hundred agencies which center their activities from the home office 
in New York City. The New Orleans Branch of W. R. Grace & Co. was established in 
1912, as a tributary to the San Francisco Branch. It is believed that the New Orleans 
office, on account of its commanding geographical position, will eventually be one of the 
most important branches of the Grace corporation. It is at present engaged in develop¬ 
ment of improved trade relations between the United States and the countries of Latin 
America and the West Indies. The Grace Company business is not confined to one line, 
but includes imports and exports, operation of steamship lines, engineering projects, 
mining, cultivation of sugar, banking and the importation and forwarding of nitrates. 


Page Sixty-Three 






ASSOCIATED BRANCH PILOTS 


Among the facilities of the port of New Orleans which have participated in its 
maritime and commercial supremacy, none are more important than those afforded by 
the Associated Branch Pilots, who operate the bar pilotage into the Southwest and 
South Passes of the Mississippi River. This association has commanded the admiration 
of the pilots and sea captains of the maritime world for the skill and knowledge of the 
bar pilots, and their coolness in time of stress and danger. The service is an acknowl¬ 


edged asset of New Orleans and the State of Louisiana, and has been recognized as a 
State agency of no mean importance. The bar pilots first organized themselves into the 
present efficient body about 1876, and the present Superintendent, Captain Ben Michel, 
was among the charter members. At that time the pilotage business of the port was 
carried on in a haphazard fashion, a group of unorganized pilots making races in fast 
schooners to the ships as they were sighted, and the first and fleetest of the racers 
getting the fees. Now' everything is systematized, and the bar pilots have efficiently 
equipped stations and lookouts at South and Southwest Passes, where ships are hailed 
as soon as they reach the bar, and a powerful pilot boat goes out to take the pilot and 
render anv other service found necessary. The services of this association have been 
so thoroughly recognized by maritime men of America that Captain Ben Michel has for 
several years past been elected the President of the American Association of Bar Pilots, 
and spends a great portion of his time in Washington looking after legislation necessary 
to protect the pilots and promote the welfare of the maritime interests. Among the 
steamship men the bar pilots’ association has been frequently praised for its valuable 
and timely services, and it is an acknowledged fact that New Orleans obtains a lower 
insurance rate by reason of the feeling of safety of the maritime insurance companies 
in the operations of bar pilots handling ships into and out of the river. At various times 
the bar pilots have been instrumental in saving ships and numerous lives during storms 
off the mouth of the river, and their unhesitating bravery in going into any sea has won 
them plaudits in song and story. A recent example of this was the saving of the steam¬ 
ship Antilles in the tropical hurricane of 1915, by bringing her safely into the river. 


The Mexican Navigation Company 

One of the oldest steamship companies In Gulf waters, owns and operates the fellow. 

S Steamers! S. S. Coahuila, Jalisco. Mexico, Tabasco. of t h^ ^ S S 

Sonora, Sinaloa, Oaxaca, Tamanllnas. Tehuantepec. Sofa, freight Of “ere the 1 3. * 
rnahniln S s Talisco and S. S. Mexico are modern passenger steamers, recently 
“hg this company and especially eunlpped for 
- 

service to the three principal Mexican ports and no ehOrtwH, be spared to iverO 


thrmip-h this nort bv water, 



Coahuila, S. S. Jalisco and S. S. Mexico are to be an attraction of this service, as they 
are among the finest passenger steamers entering this port. 

The freight service of the Mexican Navigation Company is very important to 
New Orleans. It established an office in New Orleans in December, 1914, for service 
between New Orleans and Mexican ports. Its general office was located in Vera Cruz, 
and previous to the opening of its New Orleans office and continuing it operated in the 
Mexican coastwise and Cuba to Atlantic ports trade. 


At the beginning its service from New Orleans to Mexican ports was irregular, 
but sailings were maintained in keeping with the tonnage offering. Abreast with local 


Page Sixty-Four 



































and interior business interests seeking to develop trade with Mexico, this company, 
through its Vice President and General Manager, G. Abaunza, and its local force, two 
of whom, Andre Bouligny and E. J. McGuirk, were recently appointed Assistant General 
Manager and 1 raffle Manager, respectively, labored arduously, to the end that tonnage 
to and from Mexican ports now demands the entire fleet of the company to care for it. 
A ten-day direct service is now operated between New Orleans and Tampico, Vera Cruz 
and Progreso. 

The general office of the Mexican Navigation Company, formerly in Vera Cruz, is 
now located in New Orleans on the fifth floor of the Whitney-Central Bank Building. 


SOUTHERN RAILWAY SYSTEM—Continued from Page Fifty-Six. 

character. The new Finley terminal at Birmingham is an example of what has been 
accomplished. Large outlays have also been made for motive power and equipment for 
both freight and passenger service. 

The extent cf this work will be understood from the fact that during 1914, 1915 
and 1916 there was spent for betterments and improvements on the Southern Railway 
proper $52,000,000. During the same period more than $16,000,000 was spent for like 
work on other lines of the System and on affiliated lines, making upwards of $68,000,000 
spent in three years for the upbuilding of this great transportation plant, which is now 
one of the assets of New Orleans. 


ALFRED H. CLEMENT & CO. 

Foremost among the enterprises which have done things for New Orleans in a 
maritime way is the firm of Alfred H. Clement & Co., steamship and freight-forwarding 
agents. Alfred H. Clement, a man of initiative, is the head of this firm, and it is to the 
knowledge of Mr. Clement that the success of the firm is largely due. Mr. Clement was 
among the first of those who realized the commercial and exporting disabilities of the 
Crescent City and set his head to the restoration of New Orleans to her old pre-eminence 
in maritime affairs. At first his efforts met with scant success, but no amount of rebuff 
could convince him that he was of wrong opinion. He continued the fight undaunted, 
with the result that even those who were of opposite opinion were forced to adopt his 
views. Among his tactical victories of this character were those which resulted in making 
New Orleans a large exportation point for dressed lumber, hewn timbers and cottonseed 
products. When all the commercial world was bewailing the loss of steamship tonnage 
at the early part of the European war, Mr. Clement and his associates conceived the idea 
of utilizing the windjammers, or sailing ships. At this time many of these were laying 
up in harbors, some rotting, others being broken up for junk. By quiet maneuvering, 
Mr. Clement got hold of a fleet of these boats under charter for long terms, and before 
the shipping world was aware of his coup he had booked millions of feet of pine and 
hardwood lumber through New Orleans. In this way scores of mills were able to reopen 
which had been closed for months, and the beginning of the boom of the lumber business 
was at hand. This, however, was only one of a number of such enterprises conceived and 
carried out by Mr. Clement, and every victory has resulted in much good for New Orleans 
in a shipping way To him was greatly due the restoration of a good portion of the cotton 
trade for New Orleans as he took active charge of the readjustment of rates and paved 
the wav for the formation of the Joint Traffic Bureau and the success of the Public Belt 
bv his expert management of the free time and export situations. Mr. Clement is one of 
the vounger business men of New Orleans who have been leaders in her restoration, and, 
though charged freely with being a knocker, it has been proved that his hammer was 
always for constructive purpose, and never a destructive one. 


Mexican Import and Export Corporation 

Another of the corporations which has come to New Orleans through the develop¬ 
ment of the general trade between the ports of Mexico and the nation’s second port is 
the Mexican Import and Export Corporation, which has its offices in the Queen & Cres¬ 
cent Building, at Room Suite 505. The Mexican Import and Export Corporation, however, 
looks particularly after the reciprocal trade which comes to New Orleans and the 
Mississippi Valley cities through the importation of thousands of tons of general 
merchandise monthly through New Orleans and other ports. The company is agent for 
the Cia de Navigacion del Sureste, now doing business between here and Progreso, with 



freight and passengers. It handles consignments of all classes of merchandise, both 
as a principal and as a freight-forwarding agency, and sees to it that -all of its 
commissions are carried out to the satisfaction of the persons with whom it is 
doing business. Since the establishment of this firm in New Orleans last year 
il has handled many cargoes of general merchandise for planters and merchants of the 
State of Yucatan and other sections of Southern and Isthmian Mexico. Connections have 
been established with some of the leading flour mills, cotton mills, machinery houses, 
supply houses for electrical goods, building materials, drugs, chemicals—in short, every 
article used in the territory to be served—and the company is doing everything in its 
power to foster the increase of trade exchange between merchants and manufacturers of 
the United States and the planters and dealers of Mexico. Cordial relations have already 
been established and many orders have been placed by New Orleans firms and factories 
in this virgin territory. The local representative of the Mexican Import and Export 
Corporation is Senor Moises Garcia, a prominent business man of one of the foremost 
families of Mexico City, and the company is a branch of a larger New York firm. A large 
force of clerical assistants is retained, with William Ryan as the office manager, and with 
the arrival of every mail there are letters containing orders from the Mexican principals 
of the firm. These orders are sometimes very large, and on several occasions have been 
for thousands of sacks of corn or from 100 to 300 carloads of family flour, or com meal, 
or stock feed. The Yucatan Peninsula is a rich country, but it imports practically all the 
food, clothing and fuel it uses. The company is busily engaged in extending the scope of 
its operations, and expects soon to have agencies in all parts of Mexico. 










LOUISVILLE & NASHVILLE R AILRO A D—Continued from Page Fifty-Five. 

set their products, fresh and crisp, before the Eastern consumer, and afford the Crescent 
City a direct route to get the Summer crops from the South Atlantic ternto . • 

New Orleans derives many advantages from its passenger service. It operates 
with its connections and without change, all-steel, thoroughly modern trains be e 
New Orleans and the larger cities of the North and East and 

of its service and the historic and scenic attractions of the country through whicn i 

wsses " affords „ means of travel a, once most comfortable and mwre. inn. The 

New Orleans business man, choosing the L. & N may m less than> - Gothaniite 

alight from the same car in the heart of New \ork Cit>, and , res f 

may invoke the service of this palatial carrier and, with ease, the ^ ^Vpi trans 
that would attend his hours at home, yet with the swiftness o and gl where the Gulf 
ported to that enchanting and rejuvenating c »me J^^gors from 

Shed in e tt ira- ■ 

ss?.« 

ever-radiating smile of care-free joy. 

And in no part of the South can there be found a more Ml.»“»”\"" d ch r 'only 
country than the Cut, Coast from Pensaco., to 

SXS StTalltmLe uts^paS. His becoming on, of themos. POPU^ater- 

palmettoes, the placid -waters and the sloping a tbat a ff or d an endless 

enjoyments unalloyed, the abundant haunts.of' wnshlie that mingles with 

paradise to devotees of rod and gun, and the l _ dpli°-ht _ all harmonize 

the salt-drenched breeze and mellows the tempera turn to a 

so ideally along this Southern shore time the vl sitor is o er be neath th? 

and his senses thrill with the joy °f ^harming recreation^orj fortunate 1n 

soothing spell of a drowsv. dreamt re. . - linked as thev rr Q bv the excellent 

Possessing this veritable chain of ^XosfaTus d^r Either itmav go and ea-t 

BS SREi Sh'hs woes and tin 'reared a^d'the harden, of its busy days. and. 
paraphrasing the great bard 

“ let recreation and sweet repose 
Knit up the raveled sleeve of care.” 


NEW ORLEANS RAILWAY & LIGHT COM PAN Y—Continued from Page Sixty-One. 

only 6 that ’whichlsTonsumed is registered at the meter It jj 8 ng b ® t c0 ™ e d ^“5- 
for general use that almost every man a h(? City of New Orleans is lighted 

paper, every progressive plant 1 vstem which is now being inaugurated and 
entirely by this power, and when the n . spectacle and can easily make the 

constructed is completed New Orleans M I states These lights are properlv 

claim of being the best-lighted city in the Umted State® inese s authori- 

distributed so as to afford great benefit to the people, for they^it^ the reacU of 

ties to police the various- sections. The ^ The ; e are now established 

eteryone and it can be used by all. T ^ rq , wer and transportation service three 
to meet the wants of the capacity of generators in 

great generating stations ^ h en . | substations with a capacity in KWS 

KWS of 45050 ^f7^y s st D a r Xc ed Sv these various stations for the year 4916 were 
of 11,000, and the total KWS produced the attentive care of the President, 

120,704,400. This immense production requires 


e these stations so that the production 

= ttSS&SSSt »**- r- - - — *" d 

the lighting and power process. 

• th^ fias and there is no branch of 
~ the valuable parts of this system is ti J actory results to the entire 

.. ° ne .°. that bas produced and furnished no superseded coal and 

public service that has proa w ical climate, this fuel as v To the houge . 

fesrssy; 

T,f 1854 the price of gas was placed at $4.50, and tne B volition> unt il to-day it sells 
gas has been constantly made by t ! 1 f r .^ 0 "^s that. notwithstanding the rights granted 
-,t *1 no per thousand cubic, feet, w i blic utility which is looking forward and is 

to it! the Railway and Light Company i, .^ communit y. 
giving by its combination the greatest JOSEPH H. DE GRANGE, Secretary. 


THE LATEST MODEL FERRYBOAT USED BY THE WESTWEGO AND WALNUT 
STREET FERRY COMPANY, MERCHANTS AND PLANTERS’ FERRY COMPANY, 
LIMITED, UNION FERRY COMPANY. 


Page Sixty-Six 

























ifiimnt? mb (Emtunm? 



A Story About Our Farm Lands 

Louisiana, without a doubt, has some of the richest farm lands in the world. This 
State during the past few years has made most satisfactory improvements in good roads 
construction, and as the work is mostly carried on by the Highway Department, Board 
of State Engineers, and as these roads are to be kept up by their department of con¬ 
struction and maintenance, you can feel assured that these splendid roads will be kept 
in most satisfactory condition. 

The Board of Equalization at Baton Rouge, which passes on the assessments of 
properties in Louisiana, is working hard to establish uniform values all over this State. 

The climate in Louisiana is most ideal for the farmer, and he can secure labor at a 
reasonable rate. 

Do you realize that there are good, rich farming lands in Louisiana that you can 
raise several crops a year on, and then let the land rest for three months in the year? 
Realize this and you will commence to appreciate what this land is worth. 

After consulting real estate men from all over the United States, the writer feels 
convinced that you can raise more to the acre in one year on an acre of Louisiana soil, 
and pay less proportionately for said acre, than any land in the United States. 

The tide of immigration has turned to Louisiana, so visit New Orleans and look 
over our surrounding country and see for yourself what a great place Louisiana is 
to live in. 

Visit Louisiana’s wonderful mineral resources, sulphur, oils, salt and other mineral 
deposits. See the orange and pecan groves, timber tracts and the greatest truck lands 
you have ever seen. 

Come to Louisiana via auto over the National Highways or by tran or steamer. 

W. E. HUGER, 

Farm Lands, Hennen Building, New Orleans, La. 


The New Orleans Underwriters Agency 

_ TT ^ A . 70 , ttmtvttr WRITERS’ AGENCY was organized and began 
THE NEW ORLEANS UNDERWRIT ^ classed as one of the youngest 

operating January 1st, 1914 and, tnerei > _ prominence that it can now 

institutions of our city. Nevertheless it has grown into sucn l 
justly claim to be the “Leading Insurance Agency of New unean 

It is managed by a thor¬ 
oughly efficient expert in each 
branch of the insurance busi¬ 
ness which it undertakes. 

When we mention the name 
of its officers and directors, 
together with the managers 
of the various departments, 
the public at a glance will be 
convinced that the manage¬ 
ment of this institution is 
conducted along broad and 
progressive lines. 

The Officers are: Mr. James 
B. Ross, President and Gen¬ 
eral Manager; Mr. J. W. Alex¬ 
ander, Vice President; Mr. 

William P. Maus, Secretary- 
Treasurer, all of whom are 
members of the Board of Di¬ 
rectors, and in addition Mr. 

J. W. Bolton, of Alexandria, 

La., where he occupies the 
position of President of the 
Bank of Rapides, and is, 
therefore, one of the leading 
business men in Central Lou¬ 
isiana, and with Mr. Allen E. 

Turner, comprise the Board 
of Directors. 

The various departments 
are under the supervision of 
experienced men in their 
partcuiar lines of endeavor — 

Mr. S. Lacy Dickerson, occu¬ 
pying the position of Man¬ 
ager of the local department; 
and Mr. Ralston S. Cole, Man¬ 
ager of the Marine Depart¬ 
ment. 

Soon after the organization 
of the New Orleans Under¬ 
writers Agency, their Presi¬ 
dent visited the young but 
rapidly growing city of Bogo- 

lusa, and, foreseeing the opportunity, purchased a local agency operating there, and 
thereby established a branch office at Bogalusa, which is under the management of 
Mr. Thos. D. Copeland. This branch office has grown in proportion equal to that of 
any local insurance agency in the State, with the exception of those located in the City 
of New Orleans. 

The New Orleans Underwriters Agency is conducting its affairs in a building it 
purchased when the corporation was organized, located at No. 308 Camp Street, this 
location having previously been the Home Office of the Sun Insurance Company of New 
Orleans for more than forty years. 

1 his institution is to-day representing some of the most prominent American and 
English Insurance Companies. A glance at the following list will convince anyone as to 
the absolute correctness of this statement: 

(Continued on Page Seventy-One.) 



JAMES B. ROSS, 
President and General Manager. 



Page Sixty-Eight 


George S. Kausler, Limited 

Among insurance agencies of the South the firm of George S. Kausler, Limited, 
with office at No. 409 Hibernia Building, General Agents of Fire and Marine Companies, 
holds a position of eminence. George S. Kausler, President of the company, started in 

the insurance business 20 years ago as Vice Presi¬ 
dent of the Wm. M. Railey & Co., Ltd. On the 
withdrawal of Mr. Railey the firm name became 
Mehle & Kausler, which continued for some time, 
when, at the withdrawal of Mr. Mehle, the preseni 
name of the general insurance agency was adopted 
and Mr. Charles S. Mathews, a prominent sugar 
planter, became Vice President, with M. V. Higbee 
as Manager of the Marine Department. 

George S. Kausler, Limited, represents the fol¬ 
lowing fire insurance companies as local agent: 
Phoenix Insurance Company of Hartford, Conn.; 
Aetna Insurance Company of Hartford, Scottish 
Union and National Insurance Company of Edin¬ 
burgh, German-American Alliance Insurance Com¬ 
pany of New York, Liverpool and London and 
Globe Insurance Company of New York, Franklin 
Fire Insurance Company of Philadelphia, and Han¬ 
over Fire Insurance Company of New York. 

The Marine Companies represented are: United 
States Lloyds, Indemnity Mutual Marine Assurance 
Company, Limited; Royal Exchange Assurance, 
Tokio Marine Insurance Company, Limited.; the 
Hull Fire Insurance Company, and Liverpool and 
London and Glove Insurance Company, Limited. 

For fire insurance on vessels the companies are: 
The Liverpool and London and Globe Insurance 
Company, Limited; the Scottish Union, and the 
German Alliance The Kausler Agency takes risks on cargoes for the entire Mississippi 
Valley. 


Arthur Mendes & Company 

This firm was established in 1904 by Mr. Arthur Mendes, now deceased, but prior 
to this Mr. Mendes represented some of the companies since 1884. 

The business is now under the management of Geo. P. Faure, President, and R. G. 
Mendes, Secretary-Treasurer, who have steadily increased the facilities of this office for 
handling marine and fire insurance, representing some of the strongest English and 
American marine companies, as well as several staunch fire insurance companies, and 
also have special facilities for war risk insurance, and are, therefore, prepared to meet 
the requirements of the insuring public at lowest available rates, representing the 
following companies: British and Foreign Marine Insurance Company, Ltd., of Liverpool, 
England- Standard Marine Insurance Company, Ltd., of Liverpool, England; Phoenix 
insurance Company of Hartford, Conn. (Marine); American Central Fire Insurance 
Company of St. Louis; Commercial Union Insurance Company of New York; Firemen’s 
Insurance Company of Newark, N. J.; Insurance Company of the State of Pennsylvania, 
Philadelphia; Phoenix Insurance Company of Hartford, Conn. (Fire). 






C. S. MATHEWS 


C S. Mathews, owner of Georgia Plantation, in Lafourche Parish, and the Planta¬ 
tions known as Gayoso, New Hope and Home, is one of the most successful and enter¬ 
prising sugar planters in Louisiana. Mr. Mathews first assumed charge of Georgia 
Plantation (a magnificent estate which has been 
in his family 107 years, having been first owned by 
Louisiana’s first Chief Justice, the Honorable 
George Mathews, and his wife, Harriet Flower 
Mathews) forty years ago. During his successful 
administration of the property Mr. Mathews has 
increased his holdings to more than four times the 
original acreage, besides adding a handsome sugar 
refinery and numerous other costly equipment. 

Chief Justice Mathews was one of the very earliest 
sugar planters in Louisiana, and his skill in man 
agement has come down to his grandson. Mr. 

C. S. Mathews was among the first of the South 
Louisiana planters to realize the value of planting 
corn and diversifying his crops. He has built up 
a fine herd of cattle and other live stock, and is 
rapidly attaining a reputation in scientific farming 
as well as sugar production. Mr. Mathews holds 
a prominent place in the social and business world 
at New Orleans. He is the Vice President of the 
Kausler Insurance Company and a Director of the 
Hibernia Bank and D. H. Holmes & Co., Ltd., be¬ 
sides being prominently identified with the leading 


The Liverpool & London & Globe Insurance 

Company, Limited 


The Liverpool & London & Globe Insurance 
Company, Limited, is an institution which ha3 
selected New Orleans as one of its four depart¬ 
ments for the management of its American busi¬ 
ness. It maintains a local Board of Managers, com¬ 
prising four representative merchants of New 
Orleans. It employs 86 persons at its New Or¬ 
leans offices, consisting of managers and clerks. 
It has its home in one of the handsomest buildings 
of the city, and has invested in New Orleans real 
estate to’the extent of $366,000.00. It pays an¬ 
nually in taxes to New Orleans and the State of 
Louisiana $10,047.50, and its pays $8,241.55 as taxes 
on its business operations in the city and State 
The Liverpool & London & Globe Insurance Com¬ 
pany, Ltd., has proved itself one of the most liberal 
insurance companies in the world and has endeared 
itself to the policv holders of the nation by its 
generosity to the fire and earthquake sufferers of 
San Francisco in the castastrophe at that city in 
April, 1906. Similar generosity to policy holders 
has marked its dealings with the great fires at 
Baltimore, at Atlanta, at Toronto and elsewhere, 
so that wherever the name of the Liverpool & 
London & Globe Insurance Company is mentioned 
it is synonymous with fairness, conservatism and 
safety to the insured. 


























Charles A. Farwell 

No citizen of New Orleans has been more missed by the citizenry at large of 
Louisiana than has the late Charles A. Farwell. Mr. Farwell was a good man in all that the 

term implies. A philanthropist, the staunchest of 
friends, a loyal believer in New Orleans and an 
untiring and energetic worker for the sugar indus¬ 
try of the State. He was a man of unbounded 
charity, the greater part of which was done in that 
unostentatious manner which characterized his 
whole life’s work. Probably his greatest work was 
for the Charity Hospital of New Orleans, of which 
he was a member of the Board of Administrators 
for many years. For this institution he raised 
$50,000 by the Chif benefit in 1915. However, that 
was only one of many things which made him so 
well beloved. Who can forget his wholehearted 
endeavors during the yellow fever epidemics which 
scourged the fair Crescent City in the early '80s 
and ’90s and finally in 1905, when the fear of the 
menace was forever blotted from the city’s horizon 
by discoveries of science. In every time of stress 
Charley Farwell was always at the forefront of 
those who were organizing the citizenry of the 
municipality to give aid. When a sister city of the 
Gulf Coast was stricken he was among the first to 
offer aid. Mr. Farwell was President of the Ameri¬ 
can Cane Growers’ Association and a former Presi¬ 
dent of the Louisiana Sugar Planters’ Association. 
He was born in New Orleans November 11, 1860. 
and began his business training with Richard 
Milliken, in whose business he later became a 
partner. 


Milliken & Farwell 


T ml ic;iana has been noted as America’s 
For more than one hundred and J« ars h0U1 ‘ th investments in the industry 

greatest producer of cane sugar and molasses a been made in the enterprise 

aggregate close to fifty millions of dollars. F^rtu^ ^ ^ handling of the product of 
and among the most successful in sug P of New Orleans, with headquarters m the 
plantations is the firm of Milliken & F canal Street, second floor. Milliken 

Canal Bank and Trust Company Building. at 620' 0“^ ’ on of Maine , who came 
& Farwell was founded by the late ^t^blished’ a sugar brokerage business. By 

to Louisiana before the Civil War andershipof a number of plantations in 
careful management Mr. Milliken came i Mississippi River, in St. Charles, 

Southern Louisiana, most of them bemg along . " ations ^ere Grenada, Waterford, 
Jefferson and Plaquemines Parishes. Among th< P plantations were sold 

Smithfield, Westover, Hope, Unity and Stanton Hope^na u ^y £ coUege> became an 
some years ago. Charles A. Farwell, when y ,| ntatio n for a i 1U mber of years with 
employee of Mr. Milliken, managing tl - and 1890 was made a member 

great success. Later he entered the office Orwell became the senior member and 
of the firm. On the death of Mr Mr. Mr” Deborah Milliken, widow 

manager of the Milliken & Faiwell inte > prospered through the adverse fortunes 
of the founder. The firm was among «^ n 7 re ^suga? became a menace to sugar interests 
of the Louisiana sugar planters, and when ” Vacarro Bros in their Honduras land 

Mr. Farwell became financially interested with^the Honduras, where 

holdings, and the big mill of Stanton pi ye The Honduras Sugar Company 

it was erected and has been in °P n e f ra ^°n ^veral yea^ America. More than 4,500 acres 

^ the to be refined at New 

Orleans. 


Lafayette Fire Insurance Company 

in the fire insurance business of the South, the Lafayette Fire Insurance Company 
occupies a position of considerable importance. 

This company, organized November 23, 1869, ana 
operating continuously for nearly fifty years, has 
earned a reputation for fairness, courtesy and 
promptness in meeting its obligations that makes 
its name a household word in New Orleans, an in¬ 
stitution the Crescent City can well be proud of. 

Organized in what was then known as Fauborg 
Lafayette, a section of New Orleans, the company 
had for its first President Caspar Auch, the prin¬ 
cipal organizer, Louis Mathis being its first Secre¬ 
tary and later its President. The company has 
always maintained its office in the Fourth District 
of New Orleans (originally Fauborg Lafayette). 

Originally the capital of the company was 
$150,000.00, of which $46,500.00 was paid in cash, 
the remaining $105,000.00 being made up by stock 
dividends from the profits. In the year 1916 the 
capital was increased to $200,000.00, the increased 
amount of capital being sold on a basis of $200.00 
per share, adding $50,000.00 to capital and $50,000.00 
to surplus. 

The company does purely a local business in 
New Orleans and is noted for its conservative un¬ 
derwriting. 

President John X. Wegmann is a gentleman of 
the highest character, whose methods of manage¬ 
ment can be highly commended. Under his busi¬ 
ness-like and honorable administration the com¬ 
pany is bound to continue to occupy one of the 
highest places in the business in its particular 


territory. 


JOHN X. WEGMANN. 


Will iam Joseph Caste 11 

William Joseph Castell, one of the leading men 
in the financial and commercial circles of the Cres¬ 
cent City, his place of nativity, is the son of 
William J. Castell, who was a prominent attorney 
in New Orleans. In his youth he attended a pri¬ 
vate school on Bayou Road, after which he pursued 
his studies at Jefferson College, in St. James 
Parish, for several years. In 1905 he started in 
business as a dealer in stocks and bonds, and has 
continued his activities in the same line to the 
present time, having his office at 626 Gravier 
Street, New Orleans. Mr. Castell is a member of 
the New Orleans Cotton Exchange, the New Or¬ 
leans Board of Trade, New Orleans Stock Ex- 
chang. He is also a member of the Pickwick, the 
Chess Checkers and Whist, the Country and the 
Southern Yacht Clubs. Mr. Castell subscribes to 
the creed of the Catholic Church and belongs to 
the Knights of Columbus. In 1897 occurred his 
marriage to Miss Bella Byrne, daughter of John 
B Byrne, of New Orleans, and they have two chil¬ 
dren', namely, William J. Castell, Jr., and Denise 
Castell. 


Page Seventy 










Mortgage Securities Company 

The Mortgage Securities Company, corner of Camp and Canal Streets, is perform¬ 
ing a real service to New Orleans property holders by bringing Eastern and Northern 
capital into the field. They have closed nearly a half million dollars’ worth of loans 
secured by first mortgage on commercial and residential property in this city at rates 
varying from 5 to 5% per cent. 

The company makes its loans on a scientific basis, giving the borrower five and 
ten years in which to retire the loan, making small annual reduction of principal. 

It is a practice of the company to make prompt inspections and to see that every 
detail in connection with the loan is handled with dispatch. Loans are made up to 50 
per cent of the valuation of the property. 

The officers of the company are: Levering Moore, President; Louis P. Rice, 
Herman Weil and Luther E. Hall, Vice Presidents; P. M. Lamberton, Secretary, and 
S. W. Souers, Treasurer. 


James Franklin 1 urn hull 


New Orleans Lakeshore Land Company 

Bordering the shores of Lake Pontchartrain for almost nine miles is the largest 
orange and grapefruit grove in the world, tne property of the New Orleans Lakeshore 
Land Company. This tract, embracing more than 8,000 acres, is reclaimed sweet marsh 
land, bearing probably the most fertile soil in the world, and before it was planted in 
oranga and grapefruit trees it was given a thorough test by experts in citruss fruit 
culture. The lands were reclaimed by expert drainage engineers, who perfected a 
system of main and lateral canals which not only made the lands themselves perfectly 
dry but provided a system of some 52 miles of hard shellroads, the materials for which 
were dredged from the canals. Before the planting of citrus fruits was determined upon 
the owners of the tract had ample demonstration of its fertility and productivity through 
the raising of some of the finest crops of corn, cabbage and potatoes ever marketed in 
the New Orleans district. The planting of the groves with orange trees has not yet been 
completed and may require another season, but when they are all set out there will be 
more than 500,000 orange trees and fully 250,000 grapefruit trees under cultivation. 

Through the excellent salesmanship of the Louisiana company, these orange and 
grapefruit groves have been disposed of to some of the leading investors of the country, 
and within the next six years they will have turned to them citrus groves in an excellent 
state of cultivation and capable of bearing large crops of luscious oranges and grapefiuit. 
On the lake front of the property sites have been laid off for villas, and it is expected that 
numbers of the grove owners will erect their winter homes there. Excellent automobile 
roads connect the property with New Orleans, via Gentilly Avenue, and the groves can be 
reached^nTess than twenty minutes’ drive from Canal and Baronne Streets. In fact, 
every foot of the land is in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans, and the property comprises 
v, hat would be some 9,000 city blocks were the city laid off through the tract. This gives 
additional value to the holdings, for when New Orleans becomes a city of 1,300,000 
inhabitants, which is confidently expected within the next twenty years, its suburban 
residence portion will, no doubt, encroach upon the orange groves. The New Orleans 
Lakeshore Land Company is owned by five of the most prominent business men of New 
Orleans the President being Frank B. Hayne, a millionaire cotton merchant. Other 
owners are Robert H. Downman, Ernest Le Jahncke, President of the Association of 
Commerce; J. J. Gannon, President of the Hibernia Bank, and F. B. Williams. 

NEW ORLEANS UNDERWRITERS—Continued from Page Sixty-Eight. 

The companies at present represented are as follows. 

Sun Insurance Office of London. The Oldest Fire Insurance Company in the 

Worid, this being itss 208th y ® ar n Ltd . ( 0 f Liverpool, the Leading Fire Insurance 

The R( ? ya l L, , d t , e Connecticut Fire Insurance Company of Hartford, Conn.; 

Company of the World, and the uonnecucuLr Eneland - Franklin Fire Insurance 

the Yorkshire Insurance Comp . > ^ - Company o£ London; British Underwriters’ 
Company of .Ratine. i Assurance Company, Ltd., of Dublin. 

Agency; above mentioned companies the facilities of the Marine De- 

In addition to the above “®n» 0 “ e company, Ltd., of Liverpool, and the 

No r rSfuo7dT“raSfe Company ot Christiania, Norway, give, unsurpassed facilities 
,n [his branch of the corporation's undertaking. 



James Franklin Turnbull, Realty Developer, was 
born November 2, 1889. He was formerlj con¬ 
nected with the Leon Godchaux Company, Ltd., 
and the Texas Oil Company. Mr. Turnbull entered 
the real estate field in the latter part of 1915, 
specializing in Metairie Ridge, suburban sites, 
farms, factory or river front sites in .Jefferson and 
St. Charles parishes. Mr. Turnbull has met with 
a great deal of success since establishing himself 
in this specialty field, having promoted quite a 
number of large developments in the adjoining 
parishes. 

Mr. Turnbull is Vice President and General 
Agent for the Greater Metairie Land and Develop¬ 
ment Company, a corporation which Mr. Turnbull 
organized for the purpose of promoting suburban 
developments. 

Mr. Turnbull is a member of several prominent 
clubs of this city. 


Louisiana Abstract and Title Guarantee Co. 

Among the city’s leading business and financial institutions is the Louisiana 
Abstract and Title Guarantee Company, which was organized in 1913 with a capital of 
$400 000.00 and backed by a number of the large financial, business and professional men 
of this city who recognized the need in Louisiana of an institution of large capital and 
resources equipped to furnish abstracts of title and title insurance on properties in the 
State, and especially in the City of New Orleans. 

The operation of the company follows the general line of the business of such 
companies as have been developed in other cities of the Lnited States, and especiall} in 
the Northern and Eastern sections. 

The Louisiana Abstract and Title Guarantee Company is equipped to make and 
certify to abstracts of title, to guarantee or insure titles to real estate in all parts of 
Louisiana, and from its large and valuable collection of maps and plans it is prepared 
to furnish accurate maps of surveys and ownership maps. It maintains a special ser\ice 
in connection with the registry of mortgage notes, and by the use of its own funds and 
the funds of outside capital it is prepared to render satisfactory and efficient service in 
the placing of loans upon real estate. 

The officers and directors of the company are as follows: 

Felix J Dreyfous, President; P. H. Saunders, Vice President; F. Dietze, Jr., Vice 
President; W. W. Bouden,. Vice President; P. M. Lamberton, Vice President; C. A. 
Hartwell, Vice President; M. P. Bouslog, Secretary-Manager. 

Directors—C. E. Allgeyer, J. P. Balwin, J. W. Billingsley, Joseph E. Blum, W. W. 
Bouden M P Bouslog, A. D. Danziger, F. Dietze, Jr., Felix J. Dreyfous, Meyer Eiseman, 
C A Hartwell, Burt W. Henry, J. P. Henican, W. T. Jay, P. M. Lamberton, Eldon S. 
Lazarus Meyer Lemann, L. A. Livaudais, Levering Moore, Emilien Perrin, P. H. 
Saunders, Herman Weil, Solomon Wolff, R. B. Bishop, Chas. de B. Claiborne. 

The company maintains on deposit with the Secretary of State and State Treasurer 
the amount of $25,000.00 in approved securities as an indemnity fund under the law of 
1916 and it also owns the ten-story Title Guarantee Building at the corner of Baronne 
and Wavier Streets, so that its assets are well placed in a manner to afford adequate 
security to those who hold its abstracts and policies. 











THE ST. CHARLES HOTEL 


T HE ST. CHARLES HAS 
been numbered among the 
world’s noted hostelries 
for almost one hundred years. 
New Orleans boasted of its St. 
Charles Hotel as early as 1834, 
and with good reason, for at that 
time there was probably not its 
equal anywhere on the American 
continent. 

Replete with historic interest, 
it has housed many of the most 
famous men of the century, and 
its corridors contain to-day main 
pictures of men and events that 
bring to mind the stirring times 
of old New Orleans. Charles 
Dickens made the St. Charles liis 
stopping place while on his cele¬ 
brated tour of America. 

Oakey Hall, Mayor of New 
York City during the epoch of 
Alfred S. amer, its greatest prosperity, visiting 

Vice President and General Manager. New Orleans in ’54, said of the 

St Charles- “Set the St. Charles down in St. Petersburg and you would think 
it a palace; in Boston, and ten to one you would christen it a college; m London 
and it would marvelously remind you of an Exchange; in New Orleans it is all 
three ” Nor was Oakey Hall the only visitor who broke out into such warm, 
enthusiastic and rapturous admiration of the St. Charles. Lady Wortley, an 
English lady, who had “done” Europe thoroughly, and was in search of some¬ 
thin^ new and startling in America, pronounced the St, Charles a superb edifice, 
very similar to St. Peter’s at Rome, and praised its “immense dome and Corinth¬ 
ian portico” as the finest piece of architecture she had ever seen anywhere m the 

"^The St Charles is especially well equipped to accommodate the many large 
conventions and meetings of public men attracted to New Orleans by reason of 
its climatic, geographic and railroad superiority, and it is no unusual occurrence 
ic house from 500 to 1,000 people and provide them with necessary meetings halls, 
committee rooms, etc. Among the notable gatherings might be mentioned Ameri¬ 
can Bankers’ Association, Cotton Conference of Southern Governors Western 
Fruit Jobbers’ Association, American Bottlers’ Association, National Hardware 
Manufacturers’ Association. Southern Hardware Jobbers’ Association, National 
Railway Mail Association. American Boiler Manufacturing Association and In¬ 
ternational Ticket Agents Association. 


The present magnificent structure, occupying almost an 

. ' .' ,, • j Charles to occupy the same site. Correct a 

Rooms provide ample entertainment space for many hundred mo e 

A complete Turkish and Russian Bath Establishment is one of the up-t°-date 
features of the present Hotel, and is furnished with the most modern o hy¬ 
dropathic equipment. Every department is in charge of an expel in 

The Vice President and General Manager of the present operating company 
Mr Alfred S. Amer is well and favorably known to the traveling public, and . 

a graduate of what’is known as the B^chool,^rif ^NewYork before 
connected with the management of the Waldort-Astoi la 

coming to New Orleans. 


Page Seventy-Two 


















Monteleone Hotel 


If the general run of business of a hos¬ 
telry can be taken as a criterion of the 
estimation of the public, the Monteleone 
Hotel, formerly the Commercial, is one of 
the most popular hotels in the country. 
It has few peers in popularity among the 
traveling men in the South; for there 
is rarely a time when the Monteleone is 
not filled to capacity, and, whether sum¬ 
mer or winter, the choicest rooms are dif¬ 
ficult to obtain without previous reserva¬ 
tion. The Monteleone Hotel is one of the 
best established hostelries in the country, 
having been founded some 25 years ago 
by the late Anthony Monteleone, a Sicilian 
nobleman, who had come to New Or¬ 
leans many years previous to manufac¬ 
ture shoes. Mr. Monteleone prospered, 
and his industry is now one of the lead¬ 
ing shoe factories in the South. He first 
operated the Commercial Hotel, a hotel 
designed to cater to the wants of the 
commercial traveler, and soon, under the 
management of James D. Kenney, it be¬ 
came the abode of the leading salesmen 
of the South. 


new ORLEANS 


The Hotel Lafayette 

The construction of the Lafayette Hotel, at Lafayette Square and St. Charles 
Street, marked an important event in the hotel life of New Orleans. The Lafayette was 
the first hotel to be constructed out of the old business district in New Orleans, and its 
enterprising promoter, Mr. Albert Aschaffenburg, was the first made to realize the 
possibilities of developing a tourist-family hotel along beautiful St. Charles Street. The 
result of his optimism was the erection of a modern, thoroughly fireproof six-story hotel 
building, up to date in every particular and appointment and an ornament to the city. 

The Lafayette is located in the civic center of New Orleans. It is a home hotel, in 
that it strives to make a home for its guests by convincing them that the first essential 
to good service is courtesy. The hotel has ice-cold running water in every room and is 
screened throughout. It is located so that it has every room refreshed by breezes from 
the river or lake, and particular attention is paid to every comfort of the guests. 


The Brasco Restaurant 

If you want a prominent business or professional man of New Orleans at lunch¬ 
time, you are sure to find him at Brasco’s, the business man’s restaurant, at 718-720 
Gravier Street, and one of the best eating places in America. Brasco’s is the gathering 
place of the most substantial business men of New Orleans, and whenever there is a 
man who wants to find an associate for a luncheon engagement, it’s dollars to the hole 
in a doughnut he will go to Brasco’s to get him. Brasco’s restaurant was founded a 
number of years ago by A. G. and H. Brasco, themselves accomplished chefs, who have 
an extended acquaintance with every dainty sought by the epicure. Rare game, fish and 
poultry, all done to a turn and suited to the most exacting tastes, are to be found at all 
times and in their proper season, and the salads and entrees of Brasco’s are a delight 
which has become the talk of every visitor to New Orleans. The restaurant is the special 
gathering place for men of prominence in the railroad world, and there is rarely a visiting 
railroad official who comes to New Orleans who does not take his luncheon at Brasco’s^ 
arid that means that every other meal he gets in New Orleans is taken at Brasco’s as well 
for to enjoy the cuisine of the famous restaurant once is to make it your permanent 
eating place for yourself and friends. 


pave vnoes- 


«***<•«*», 



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Bfr U 


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Ld 'SR % K 


Page Seventy-Three 








































Dan S. Lehon Detective Agency, Inc. 

Mr. Dan S. Lehon, a native of Illinois, principal and owner of the Dan S. Lehon 
Detective Agency, Inc., has been a close observer of the advances and improvements made 
in the City of New Orleans since 1899, in which year he was appointed Special 

Agent for the Illinois Central Railroad, with head¬ 
quarters in Memphis, Tenn., his territory being 
from Memphis to New Orleans, and his business 
brought him to New Orleans at very frequent in¬ 
tervals. He has closely co-operated with New 
Orleans officials, and more especially the police 
officials, ever since that time. 

He has been a continuous resident, however, of 
this city since 1903, and is one of the staunchest 
and most enthusiastic believers in the great future 
that is held in store for oar city. Mr. Lehon takes 
great pride in numerating the many substantial 
public and general improvements that have been 
made here in the past nineteen years, and particu¬ 
larly since 1903. He never overlooks an opportunity 
when traveling, which his duties very often require 
him to do, and quite extensively, to continually 
boost New Orleans. 

Mr. Lehon married Miss Ernestine Cuneo, a 
native of New Orleans, in June, 1906; is the head 
of a large and interesting family; owns his own 
home at 368 Audubon Street, and has all of his 
interests centered here. He is an enthusiastic 
member of the Association of Commerce, the 
Knights of Columbus and the Young Men’s Gym¬ 
nastic Club. 

He has been engaged in the secret service busi¬ 
ness nearly all of his life, and, after occupying 
positions of trust in the employ of others for more than twenty years as manager and 
director of secret service enterprises, on July 1st, 1916, branched out for himself, opening 
up a secret service bureau of his own, with offices in the Whitney-Central Building, and 
enjoys the confidence and esteem of all of the city authorities, as well as the leading 
business men of the community. 


HENRY PETERS 


All of the romance of the sea attaches to the business career of Henry Peters, con¬ 
tracting stevedore, and Mr. Peters and his equipment of large marine derricks and their 
machinery play a large part in the maritime commerce of New Orleans. At one time the 
huge fifty-ton capacity derricks are lifting from the bottom of the Mississippi slimy 
wreckage of steamboats of other generations; at another they are raising a steamboat 
which may have listed too far from injudicious loading, and still again the stevedore and 
his crew may be unloading the valuable mahogany logs for the Otis Company or trans¬ 
ferring the Italian marbles from Leghorn to the railway cars from the ships’ holds. Mr. 
Peters handles heavy sugar machinery for houses in Cuba and Porto Rico, and at odd 
times fishes up lost cables for the Telephone or Railway-Light companies. Mr. Peters’ 
two derrick boats are the Louisiana and the New Orleans, and they are probably the 
most powerful boats on the river or in the South. The Louisiana picked up a 65-ton 
steam shovel at Red River and carried it quite a distance, and its average day s work in 
handling marble is moving fifty blocks from a ship to a freight car. The New Orleans 
was the first derrick boat to go through Southwest Pass, and brought up all the machinery 
for the coaling station. Mr. Peters is a valuable citizen of New Orleans, and resides at 

3026 Ursuline Street. 


HANS M. WANG. 


LEO RASCH. 


Hans M. Wang and Co. 

Hans M. Wang & Co. is one of the best known firms in the ship chandlery 
business with,a large trade among ships coming to New Orleans. Captain Wang, the 
senior member, was for many years the captain of the Norwegian steamship Origen, in 
the fruit trade between 1906 and 1915, and entered the ship chandlery business in July, 
1915 Captain Wang was born in Tonsberg, Norway, in September, 1869, and left home 
in 1886, locating in New Orleans. Leo Rasch, a native of New York, born 22 years ago, 
entered the firm in March, 1917. 


A. M. &J. Solari, Limited 

The fancy grocery house of A. M. & J. Solari, Ltd., was founded in the year 1864, 
fifty-three years ago; has been in continuous operation ever since, and can, therefore, 
justly claim to be among the oldest establishments of the State. It was incorporated in 
the year 1893. Without boasting, it can be justly said that it would not have survived 
all these years had not all of its dealings been founded on honesty and justice towards 
all of its patrons. 


Galatoire’s Restaurant 


One of the attractions of New Orleans—an attraction that increases as knowledge 
of its superior service becomes more generally disseminated—is Galatoire’s famous 
restaurant. This caterer par excellence is justly entitled to the reputation he enjoys, 
and the continued and growing popularity of his establishment is unquestioned evidence 
that it is more than merited. His patronage is not confined to New Orleans, or to 
Louisiana, or even to this country; but his fame has gone abroad, and his place is the 
rendezvous of connoiseurs of the good things of the cuisine from every land. 

Galatoire makes a specialty of dainty French and Southern dishes, in the confection 
of which he has but few if any equals. He is attentive and considerate of his patrons; 
his charges are in exact proportion to the quality and character of the service rendered, 
and a meal with him as host is not only a revellation in the art gastronomical but a thin° 
of surpassing joy that will long live in memory. 


Page Seventy-Four 










Woodward, Wight & Company, Ltd 

H oward Avenue, Constance and St. Joseph Streets 


“The Largest General Supply House South” has this year rounded out a 
half century of service to the industries of the South. 

Founded in 1867, this house* has consistently anticipated the development 
of all the larger industries until now wherever there is a smokestack in this 


Competent engineers in their organization are to be consulted on problems 
of irrigation and drainage, and many of the most important pumping operations 
in this territory have been handled by this concern. 

A fully equipped machine shop and blacksmith shop in their own building 





Southern territory Woodward, Wight & Company, Ltd., is looked upon as the. 
largest and most reliable source of equipment and operating supplies. 

One of the three largest stocks of ships’ chandlery in America is carried on 
their doors, and, undoubtedly, the largest and most varied stock of railtroad, 
saw mill, sugar mill, cotton oil mill, contractors and electrical plant equipment 
and supplies in the entire country is part of their stock. 

There are many features of the service rendered by this house which are 
unique in merchandizing establishments. 


is maintained for quickly handling calls for boring, pulleys, sprockets, etc., key¬ 
seating, shafting and special work in iron and steel. 

Expert wire and Manila rope splicers and beltmakers handle the regular and 
repair calls for work requiring this character of service. 

To make all the facilities of this organization more fully effective, a full 
shipping service nights and Sundays is maintained to handle rush shipments for 
repairs and other emergency calls. 



Page Seventy-Five 















































































































A. HELD 

Importer and Exporter 

The geographical position of New Orleans, commanding as it does the trade of the 
Mississippi Valley and its tributaries for import and export business, attracted the firm 
of A. Held, importers and exporters of New York City to New Orleans several years ago. 
This firm had established itself successfully in the territory contiguous to New York and 
had expanded its business connections until it occupied a commanding position in the 
trade world of the metropolis. Its managers realized that the opening of the Panama 
Canal and the readjustment of transcontinental rates in America, as well as the 
readjustment of ocean tariffs throughout the world by the shortening of trade routes 
from the Orient and the western coast of South America to the United States would 
mean the opening of vast opportunities for the development of the import and export 
trade through New Orleans. As the entrepot of the Mississippi Valley and the rich 
industrial sections tributary to that rich section from the Lakes to the Gulf, Mr. Held’s 
firm foresaw that New Orleans was destined to become a great distributing center. His 
firm has specialized in the import and export trade with Central and South America and 
ilie West Indies. Large connections have been established, and through the astuteness of 
the management and its liberality of terms in dealing with merchants and producers of 
raw products in Latin-American countries some very satisfactory connections have been 
made. The firm has extensive representation in the sections with which it trades, and its 
operations are growing more and more remunerative with the passing of every year. 
It is spreading the products of the industry of the cities of the Mississippi and Ohio 
valleys, and there is scarcely a boat leaving New Orleans for a Latin-American port 
which has not a large-sized consignment for a customer of A. Held. The management 
has an abiding faith in the future of New Orleans, and in its transactions it has been one 
of the objects of its representatives to place articles and products manufactured in this 
city in the business houses of Hispano-American cities whenever possible. 


STONEWALL JACKSON 

Stonewall Jackson, licensed public weigher and prominent warehouseman, is one 
of the leaders in the movement which has resulted in placing New Orleans first among 
the coffee-importing norts of the United. States. Mr. Jackson is the proprietor of the 
Standard Warehouse, with offices at No. 840 Tchoupitoulas Street, and in his business 
has specialized in the storage and handling of coffees. He has been associated with the 
coffee business in various lines since 1880, and is regarded as one of the authorities on 
coffee of the United States. The Standard Warehouse is devoted exclusively to the 
storage and forwarding of coffee, and its operation is directed by Mr. Jackson, the pro¬ 
prietor Mr. Jackson is prominent socially, being a member of the leading clubs, the 
Board of Trade, the Association of Commerce, and prominent in Carnival and boosting 
work for New Orleans. 


W. H. DOUGLAS 


W. H. Douglas is one of the most prominent business men of New Orleans, having 
been identified with the warehousing and drayage business for the past thirty years. 
For a number of vears he has been the general manager and proprietor of the Douglas 
Transfer, with offices at No. 337 Decatur Street, and engaged in freight-forwarding, 
storage and general transfer business. Mr. Douglas is, in addition, a director and member 
of the Executive Committee of the Whitney-Central National Bank and the Whitney- 
Central Trust and Savings Bank; President of the Standard Paving and Construction 
Companv President of the Home Realty Company, and Vice President of the New Orleans 
Parking'Commission. Recentlv an added honor was given him in his election as the 
Vice President and General Manager of the Appalachian Corporation at New Orleans. 
In this capacitv he will have charge of the public bonded warehouses of the Appalachian, 
which recently bought the big Brooklyn Cooperage Company plant and is to convert it 
into a big cold storage plant and bonded warehouse for handling of fruits and vegetables, 
a« well as all other classes of freight-forwarding business. 


Bultman Sons 6c Co. 



A. FRED BULTMAN, JR. 


Early in the year 1883 the business of Bultman 
Sons & Co. was established by Anthony F. Bultman, 
Sr at 2915-17 Magazine Street. From the ^ e Sj n ' 
n ng R continued to grow until 1909, when adjoin- 
ng properties were purchased and the most 
modern establishment of its kind in the city was 
uiIt The same year, under the leadership of 
A Fred Bultman, Jr., President and General Man¬ 
ager the business was incorporated and the well- 
known firms cf The Maxwell Company, Ltd., and 
The F. Johnson & Son Company, Ltd., were ac- 
n U ired As the successors of these well-known 
firms the business of the Bultman Sons & Co. 
grew to one of the largest in New Orleans, cater¬ 
ing to the best families in the city. 

The personnel of the firm is high. They enjoy 
the confidence of the public, and do the largest 
undertaking and livery business in the city. 

As leaders in their profession, they find it nec¬ 
essary to be progressive and endeavor to serve in 
a manner that elects the highest praise and com¬ 
mendation from all who require their service. 

The company operates the largest and finest 
auto funeral and horse-drawn equipment in the 

South. . 

The main office, chapel and display rooms are 
located at the residence. 3338 St. Charles Avenue, 
corner Louisiana Avenue. 


Lester F. Alexander and Company 

Prominent among the civil engineers and contractors of New Orleans and the 
South is the firm of Lester F. Alexander & Co., of Room 834 in the Audubon Building. 
New Orleans. The firm is composed of Lester F. Alexander, a graduate engineer ot 
experience in all classes of engineering work, and J. L. Dickey, who is the other partner. 

The firm specializes in river and harbor work, and has completed some of the 
largest and most successful jobs in the South, acting both for the Federal, State and 
Municipal Government. It has a large equipment of tugboats, barges and derricks. And 
it is the reputation of the firm of Lester F. Alexander & Co. in the engineering and 
contracting trade that its bid will be based on reasonable prices and that the work will 
be of a character which will satisfy the investor at all times. The firm has fulfilled a 
number of municipal contracts given by the enterprising administrations of Mayor 
Martin Behrman, and many of the best jobs of levee contracting and engineering, together 
with contracts for dredging and the carrying on of the complicated drainage system of 
the City of New Orleans have been entrusted to Lester F. Alexander & Co. 


LeBourgeois & Bush, Inc. 

• 

Among the sugar brokers and factors of North America the firm of Le Bourgeois 
& Bush, Inc., of 1012-1014 Hibernia Bank Building, New Orleans, holds a leading position. 
This firm, which is headed by J. C. Le Bourgeois as President, has been one of the most 
enterprising agencies for the advancement of the sugar industry in Louisiana, and 
recently won the esteem of every sugar planter and refiner by the able manner in which 
Mr. Le Bourgeois exercised his business and diplomatic powers in bringing about a 
friendly basis leading to the settlement of the difficulties of the planters and the principal 
buyers of their commodity. Mr. Le Bourgeois was one of those who took a prominent 
part in obtaining a market for the raw sugars of the Louisiana planters for their 1916 
crop, and this paved the way for an amicable arrangement of the troubles pending. 
R. G. Bush, Jr., is the Vice President of the company, while P. J. Stouse is the Secretary- 
Treasurer. 


Page Seventy-Six 








D. H. HOLMES COMPANY, LTD. 


Among the first of the stores in America to adopt the principle of satisfying the 
customer and to establish one lowest price and a guarantee on all goods purchased, the 
Canal Street Department Store of D. H. Holmes & Co., Limited, established a custom 
which has been followed by all first-class stores. This custom, as well as many others, 
has formed the pattern for merchants of all classes who believe in fair dealing and 
ethical treatment of patrons and buyers, and that, among others, has made the Holmes 
store one of the proudest institutions of New Orleans or the South. 

The Holmes store completed the seventy-fifth year of its merchandising history in 
April, 1917, thus rounding out three-quarters of a century since its founder, Daniel H. 
Holmes, then but 27 years old, opened its doors at a little store in No. 36 Chartres Street. 

It was a ladies’ store at that time, and Mr. Holmes, who had come to New Orleans only 
nine years prior to that date, was the first merchant to cater exclusively to the ladies. 

In the Picayune of July 7, 1842, for it was April 2nd, 1842, that the store^was 
founded, was inserted a modest one-inch advertisement addressed "to the Ladies. n 
read: “The lovers of cheap and fashionable dry goods of all styles, grades and descnp- 
tions can be gratified to their entire satisfaction by calling at No. 36 Chartres Street and 
examining stock in store.” 

Thus it was from the very first that Mr. Holmes catered to the fashionable trace. 

In the quest for styles, the growth and progress of the store’s business became clo ® e1 ^ 
interwoven with the most treasured memories of the social life of ante-bellum New 
Orleans and the South’s proudest cities. Throughout the years that followed its modes 
opening, the Holmes store has never closed its doors, although it has passed through 
several financial panics, the Mexican and Civil Wars and the terrible period of reco 
struction and the misrule of the carpet-bagger and despoiler. Except on holidays and 
special occasions the doors of the store, which is now a New Orleans institution in every 
sense, in fact, one of its traditions, the doors of Holmes’ establishment have been opened 
daily whether in stress, peril or what not. 

It was the period of the Mexican War which first established the national prestige 
of the Holmes store for organdies, mulls, linens and other fine summer fabrics. The city 
uas then the headquarters for the wives and families of scores of officers and other 
officials brought to New Orleans by the embarkation of expeditions for Mexico by 
General Zachary Tavlor and General Winfield Scott, and the gaieties and added social 
life made the city the scene of more festive gatherings than had ever before been its 
lot The ladies of wealth and prominence from all sections of the country came to ma e 
\«ew OrLans their temporary home, the reputation of Holmes store became ot national 
character. It was at this time also that the Holmes store was moved to its present loca¬ 
tion in Canal Street, between Bourbon and Dauphine Streets. 

Fverv article and piece of goods sold in the Holmes store bore its guarantee of 
rualitvand character and Mr. Holmes established the principle that any customer who 

the public in its dealir g times and this confidence was held inviolate when 

S"Sc"a"n"d every merchant o, siding t„ro„ gl rout the nation to adopt 

then, in order to attain ’Sever in business ethics, and in his 

The founder ot 1 standards of a high character for commercial deal¬ 

pioneering work he established ne, n< J f as ]& toI | s of New Orleans and the South, 
ings. In order to compete with s y ste m of business ethics, although at 

and the Northern cities as^well ,1 it Gr eans w ho wanted to satisfy customers, and 
first they ridiculed the ™ an J 01 „ ‘ , tore prospered even under adverse conditions, 

said he would go bantoupt- B^Hol^B store prosp ^ had t0 adapt 

and from year to year leadmg merctent^ot ^ wQuld get mllch o£ their 

themselves to the new conditions, o s business with fashion devotees 

fashionable trade. And the Holmes «ore aia ao^ ^ tQ the Mardi Gras and 

“ lashlonable materials, lingeries, imported goods and other 


fabrics which they could not duplicate outside of Europe. And these leaders of fashion 
became steady buyers. 

Mr Holmes’ success in importing fine fabrics caused him to make another innova- 

toin in merchandising when he established agency buyers at Paris and other European 
torn in merciianuib e purchase the best and most 

“Xna\m SrStfo.?* Sgein whioh Laid give Holmes’ patrons 

the benefit of the business acumen of the New Orleans merchant. Again le . e\v 

houses had to follow suit to keep their trade. 

Holmes’ buyers were ever on the alert to get the best and most stylish costumes 
and fabrics and the wardrobes of hundreds of fashionable women throughout the country 
were supplier for years by Holmes when the merchants of their home cities could not 
keep pac P e P wi«i the rapid changes of style in ladies’ apparel Ever; g!?*™ .“J^ 1 Te£ 
buyers for Holmes’ store saw to it that the goods suitable for Holmes clientele were 
ahead of all others. The policy of scientific and economic gathering and distribution of 
merchandise has been followed at all times with the steady increase in the growth ot 
die store from a ladies’ establishment to a general department store. To-day its lines 
ie laid among ?he producing markets of the world ready to procure the most desirable 
fabrics and merchandise of all kinds for the patrons of Holmes’ store at New Orleans. 

Year after year, up to the beginning of the European war, buyers went to various 
countries of Great Britain and Continental Europe to make selections of goods and 
fabrics 1 and at times trips were made to Japan and the Orient for the same purpose 
Since the markets of most of the countries of Continental Europe are closed buyers a 
iheir advisors from Holmes’ establishment have gone to Japan and China in searc 
suitable goods. In this way New Orleans people and persons from the South and South¬ 
east have had the markets of the Orient brought to them by Holmes. 

With the steady growth of the establishment the department store has required 
more and more space until it not only occupied buildings running from Canal to Iber l 
St eetsandfromDauphine to Bourbon, but last year these were greatly enlarged. The 
window^decorations S the store lead the pace for attractive settings and refinement of 
arrangement and the displays are often followed in kind by competitors throughout the 
country The personnel of Holmes’ employees is also high and is noted for the long 
periods of service of clerks and department heads, as well as for the uniform courtesy 
the treatment of patrons. 

Added to its enterprise in providing for the needs of customers, the management 
of the big modern department store has shown a commendable spirit m its dealings with 
its employees of all classes. The principal manifestation of this is m the welfare depart 
ment of the st0 re, which is under the management of a trained welfare worker. 
Miss Janvier has established something in the nature of a civic center in the store, 
anf matters of importance to the public, such as social hygiene, instruction in treat¬ 
ment of children and babies, organization of movements among women and upli 
organizations are given free discussion in the assembly and lecture room for these 
purposes. The welfare work of the store proper among its employees has been of a 
most beneficial character, and one which has added much to the solidaritv of the men 
and women and girls and boys who earn their living at the establishment. A flourishing 
benevolent association has been formed, and, in addition, there is a lacation home for 
Holmes girls and women, where they can have the benefit of the salt breezes and bathing 
in the Gulf. For several seasons a summer home has been leased at Ocean Springs, at 
which the girls can take their vacations, and any young woman employee enjoys its 
privileges. The employees are given an annual outing also, which is always an occasion 
of much pleasure to them, and one which promotes better feeling and added loyalty. 

The heritage which descended from Mr. Holmes upon his successors was one of 
business integrity, courtesy and sane progressiveness. Each of those who have suc¬ 
cessively taken up the labors which he began so well and bmlded so permanently for 
have sought to emulate his ideals. How well this has been done can be best told by a 
visit to the store itself, where its growth, its progress, it adherance to ideals can tel 
their own story. And the loyalty of the employees and their courteous manner and 
pleasant faces will tell the rest. 



Rolf Seeberg Ship Chandlery Company 

Another conservative and well-established firm of New Orleans is the Rolf Seeberg 
Ship Chandlery Company, which has stores as well in Mobile and Gulfport, and has been 
located in New Orleans for the past fifteen years. The company handles wholesale 
groceries, deck and engine supplies and fresh provisions and does a constantly increasing 
business. The firm is also agent for the following institutions well known to all maritime 
men: Bowring Oil Company of London; Ocean Oil Company of London, England; New 
Jersey Asbestos Company of New York; Federal Composition and Paint Company of 
New York, and C. M. Lane Lifeboat Company of New York. At Mobile, which is the 
headquarters for the company, Rolf Seeberg, the President, has his office. J. V. Falck 
is Vice President, and B. C. Rain, Secretary and Treasurer. Charles O. N. Falck is the 
Manager of the New Orleans office. 


Charles J. Armbruster 


Seven-Eleven Auto Service 

New Orleans is justly proud that in the Seven-Eleven Automobile Service, Walton 
& Stainton, proprietors, they have an auto service that is in keeping with the standard 
of the city, second to none in the United States. This firm serves citizen and tourist 
alike, day or night, with a fleet of modern eight-cylinder Cadillac cars, operated by 
courteous and reliable chauffeurs, none of whom have had less than five years’ experience 
in New Orleans, for the modest sum of two dollars per hour, while other cities are paying 
double this price for cars not nearly this standard of a car or service. 

The Seven-Eleven Auto Service was organized in January, 1915, and has, by 
square dealing and giving first-class service, won a world of friends and an enviable 
reputation. 

In connection with the auto service they also operate a fast messenger service 
day and night, and this service is kept up to the “Seven-Eleven” standard at the lowest 
rates in the city. 


ALBERTO VALES 

EXPORTER 

The firm of Alberto Vales is a newcomer to this city, having opened their offices 
during October, 1916, in the Canal Bank Building, since which time they have been 
actively engaged in exporting merchandise of every description to Mexico, especially to 
the State of Yucatan, where the firm has been in business for many years. Although 
such recent arrivals, the Messrs. Vales are much pleased with New Orleans and expect 
to make their residence in this city permanently. 

Alberto Vales transacts all their financial business through the Citizens’ Bank and 
Trust Company, one of the oldest and most conservative institutions in the city. 




Charles J. Armbruster is 


the owner and director of a freight brokerage and for¬ 


warding business at offices 1109-10 



Hennen Building. Mr. Armbruster began in the 
forwarding business as a member of the firm of 
Alfred H. Clement & Co., and in the course of a 
few years took the business over in his own name 
and for his own account, and the growth of the 
business has continued steadily, now being re¬ 
garded as one of the largest freight brokerage and 
forwarding agencies in the city. Mr. Armbruster’s 
success is the more remarkable when it is remem¬ 
bered that he is considerably under thirty years 
of age, his success being based upon his compre¬ 
hensive and practical knowledge of the freight 
brokerage and forwarding business to its minutest 
detail he having visited most of the large ship¬ 
ping ports in the United States and Europe in 
order to acquire a thorough knowledge of his busi¬ 
ness. Mr. Armbruster’s large and growing clien- 
tielle expects his business to keep pace with the 
development of the business of New Orleans, 
which has been so remarkably prosperous in the 
past fifteen years. The young freight broker is a 
native of New Orleans, graduated in the public and 
high schools of the city, and his present eminence 
in the business world is the result of eleven years 
of steady application. 


LEVERT & STEELE 

Among the leading brokers handling sugar, molasses and rice is the firm of Levert 
& Steele, of No. 806 Perdido Street, New Orleans. This firm was formed in 1914 as the 
successor to J. B. Levert Company, Ltd., on the retirement from business of General 
J. B. Levert, who for more than forty years had been engaged in the sugar commission 
business. It is composed of Robert L. Levert, son of General Levert, and Dan M. Steele, 
both of whom enjoy wide acquaintance among the prominent business men of New 
Orleans. Plantation products from the properties of General Levert are handled 
principally by this firm, as the General is the owner of St. John plantation, in St. Martin 
Parish, one of the largest individually-owned plantations in Louisiana. This property 
produces close to ten million pounds of plantation sugars annually, besides a quantity 
of molasses, and has an acreage of 10,700 acres. General Levert during the period of his 
abtivity was considered one of the brightest and shrewdest plantation operators in the 
South, and was honored with the Presidency of the Louisiana Sugar and Rice Exchange, 
besides being the Treasurer of the Louisiana Sugar Planters’ Association. He is- 
interested in properties in Lafourche and Avoyelles Parishes, and his career has been 
noted for the adoption of modern and scientific methods in the management of all 
properties under his ownership or in which he was interested. He has been a consistent 
advocate of improvements in the operation of sugar plantations also, and his success is 
attributed in a great measure to his keen business acumen and knowledge of handling 
his lands. General Levert was a gallant Confederate soldier and former President of 
one of the local Confederate Camps of the U. C. V. He has also been active in move¬ 
ments foi civic betterment, and was a leading spirit in the organization and successful 
consummation of the plans of the White League which banished negro and carpet- 
baggei domination in Louisiana. Robert L. Levert, his son and member of the firm of 
Levert & Steel, is a graduate of Spring Hill College, Alabama, and stands high in 
business and social circles. Mr. Steele was connected with the firm of J B Levert 
Company Ltd., for fifteen years, and is a prominent member of the Sugar Exchange and 
Board of Trade and a leading factor in the business life of the city. 


86 


Page Seventy-Eight 








MR. PHILIP WERLEIN 


3Jn ittemnriam 

f 4tltp Urrlftn 

§tcb iFpbruary, 22 , 1917 


One of the most untimely deaths in recent years. Though only 39 years old, he 
had accomplished a lifetime’s work. 

The following tribute from Mayor Martin Behrman was one of the many hundreds 

paid: 

It would be impossible to estimate the loss sustained by the community 
in the death of Philip Werlein. Practically in the prime of life, possessed of 
a most vigorous constitution, it is almost impossible to realize the awfulness 
of the news that he has been claimed by death. I cannot recall anything 
that has shocked me so completely. Everyone knows how sincerely he gave 
the best of which he was possessed for the welfare of his beloved city. No 
undertaking to upbuild the interests of New Orleans was complete unless he 
was identified with it. He was thoroughly genuine in everything, and it 
always was a source of pride for me to realize that I enjoyed his confidence 
and friendship. 

A man of sterling qualities and pre-eminent business and executive ability was 
Philip Werlein. It is no exaggeration to say that among the leading men of auairs m 
Louisiana not one was better known and had more friends than Mr. Werlein throughout 
the country. His connection with one of the largest music houses in the United states, 
as well as his prominence in commercial and social organizations, brought him in 
contact with the biggest men in the land. It was during his administration as President 
of the New Orleans Progressive Union that Louisiana and the Crescent City entertained 
President Taft, to the credit of the entire nation. Mr. Werlein gave a great deal of his 
valuable time to perfecting arrangements for that big event that advertised Louisiana 
and New Orleans all over the country. 

Mr. Werlein’s splendid administration of the affairs of the Progressive Union 
brought the organization up to a high state of efficiency, and during his term the mem¬ 
bership increased greatly, and it was instrumental in interesting capital in both Louisiana 
and New Orleans. Mr. Werlein was regarded as one of the best financiers in the South. 
He was a practical booster and never wearied in doing everything within his power for 
the welfare of his State and city. His ideas were always of the progressive nature and 
the adoption of the most modern and approved methods. He was a firm advocate of 
truthful advertising, and made it a rule never to practice deception and to give the public 
value received for their money, and, as a result, his large music establishment has 
prospered for over seventy years. 

Although declining to become a candidate for office of a public or political nature 
carrying with it remuneration, Mr. Werlein did consent to become a member of the State 
Central Democratic Committee, and received one of the largest votes cast in the recent 
primary. The position is entirely honorary and carries with it no pay or emoluments 
On account of his excellent qualifications, Mr. Werlein was chosen as Vice President of 
the Executive Committee. He had several times refused to allow the use of his name 
for political office, preferring to perform his civic and political duties in the ranks of 
commercial men and financiers. He served for several years as the head of the Pro¬ 
gressive Union without any compensation, while he gave liberally from his own purse 
to the commercial, industrial and agricultural advancement of New Orleans and 
Louisiana. Mr. Werlein was identified with a number of social societies for the promotion 
of the friendly spirit and the entertainment of prominent visitors. He was a firm believer 
in the future of Louisiana and the port of New Orleans, and he never failed when 
attending large conventions in the North and East and on business trips to boost his city 
and State. 






Schmidt & Ziegler, Limited 

Leading among the wholesale grocery firms of New' Orleans and the South is the 
old-established house of Schmidt & Ziegler, Limited, of 510-518 Povdras Street, which 
will celebrate its diamond anniversary in the year 1920. This organization, one of t 
oldest and most conservative in New' Orleans, was founded in 1845 by F - M ,. Zl . e ^ 1 ®. 1 d f 
W B Schmidt in a location near the French Market, and has the proud distinct 
being started with a cash capital of about ?400.00. During the seventy-two years of its 
existence it has steadily added to the invested capital until it is now one of the largest 
firms in the South and does a tremendous business throughout the territory contiguou. 
to New Orleans and, in fact, throughout the Gulf States. For more than forty years it 
had occupied a building at 428-438 South Peters Street, when the firm moved to ‘ts 
present location in the three-story building occupying Numbers 510, 512, 514, 516 and 518 
Poydras Street. During its business history the firm has carried out unflinchingly the 
principles of integrity and upright dealing which were adopted at the outset by its stuidy 

When first organized Messrs. Schmidt and Ziegler built up a large river and sea 
trade among the vessels which came in from all quarters of the globe. Numbers ot 
sturdy clipper ships then made New Orleans their home port, and fortunes were made 
in provisioning these vessels. This was the beginning of the prosperous career of the 
nouse of Schmidt & Ziegler. Year by year the scope of the house became more extended 
until it became known as one of the largest and most conservative wholesale grocers 

and importers in the South. , 

In 1901 in the month of September, the firm was incorporated undei the name ot 
Schmidt & Ziegler. Limited, and C. W. Ziegler, the son of the founder, was made President 
and General Manager. In 1895 the firm had celebrated its golden anniversary, completing 
its half-century of business, and both founders lived to receive the congratulations of 
their friends, customers and business associates. Mr. C. W. Zeigler is now President of the 
corporation, with Joseph Graff, a well-known local business man as Secretary-Treasurer. 


Metairie Ridge Nursery Company, Ltd. 

One of the beauty spots of New Orleans which no visitor should failt to see is the 
propertv of the Metairie Ridge Nursery Company. This is situated m Jefferson Pansh 
iust across the line from the limits of New Orleans, at the Seventeenth Street Canal, and 
is the largest nursery in the South devoted to the cultivation of the general line o 
nursery stock. The property faces Metairie Ridge Road, which is itself one of the most 
attractive motor drives of the South, being the entrance to New Orleans of the celebrated 
Jefferson Highway, extending from Winnipeg to the Crescent City. The frontage of the 
propertv is marked by a pretty display of typical foliage, plants and trees such as are 
distinctive to the subtropical region. The home of Harry Papworth, the veteran flonst 
and expert in horticulture, who is President of the company. To the side and rear ot 
the Papworth home is the space allotted for greenhouses, and fully 60,000 square feet 
of ground is covered by this plant. Under cultivation are the choicest roses to be found 
in the South, the species which lend themselves most readily to bouquets, wreaths and 
decorative purposes. Special greenhouses are provided for thousands of chrysanthemums, 
of which the Metairie Ridge Company makes a specialty of the larger and more perfectly 
developed types. Lillies, snap-dragons, ferns and blooming plants are also to be seen 
by the hundreds, all arranged in regular rows. Palms of every known variety ornament 
the walks and border the greenhouses with their nurseries. Orchids of the rarest kinds 
from every clime are under intensive cultivation, and the company makes a specialty o 
catlvea displavs of Guatemalan orchids for weddings and other social functions. The 
retail store of the company is supplied with flowers, blooming plants and foliage plants 
from the Metairie Ridge nurseries, and the window display at lo5 Carondelet Street is 
conceded to be one of the most attractive in the South. Here the artistic floral ariange- 
ments are the feature, and designs are made for floral baskets, bouquets and loose 
flowers for every occasion. Decorations are also supplied for weddings, balls receptions 
and other social'and fraternal functions, and visitors are always welcomed The Metairie 
Ridge Nursery Company is distinctively a home enterprise, practically all of its officeis 
and stockholders being residents and prominent business men of New Orleans. R. W. 
Wilmot the Vice President, is identified with the machinery and supply business, and 
Samuel A Trufant, the Secretary-Treasurer, was for years the cashier of the Citizens 
Bank, and’is one of the leading brokers of the city. 



R. P. HYAMS COAL COMPANY 

Supplying ol coal to the inhabitants ot a city the sine and importance ot New 
Orleans ” a task which requires an organUation 0, complex character and one ot 
conspicuous efficiency; for ho, only must the needs 0, every householder and bus,ness 
man be supplied, but also those of the industries and utilities which cany on the city s 
business; supply it with electric light, with power for the street railways and the various 
industries of the city and keep up the steam in the boilers of the Crescent City s eight 
hundred and eighty-odd manufacturing enterprises. All of these things have to be looked 
after 365 days in the year by the coal man. The R. P. Hyams Coal Company does 60 
per cent of the domestic and factory business of New Orleans. In its great yaids in 
Calliope Street and elsewhere are to be found great piles of the black diamonds ready 
to be moved at a moment’s notice to the thousands of household consumers and other 
buyers of the city. Having yards in the different residential districts facilitates prompt 
delivery to those customers residing in these particular districts. 




Page Eighty 





BACHER BROTHERS 

This firm was established 54 years ago by Christian Bacher, Sr., who, with his 
faithful wife, conducted a small bake shop in the old portion of New Orleans, corner 
C iab and Bogatelle Streets, for three or four years. Prom this location he moved to the 
corner of Chippewa and St. James Streets, where, for 22 years, the quality of his bread 
pleased the better element of the uptown bread-eaters in the neighborhood of the 
Magazine Street Market. 

Owing to bad health he was compelled to retire from business for two or three 
years, when he again started in the baking business in the Garden District, at the corner 
of Laurel and Foucher Streets. About two or three years after opening this bakery, his 
three sons, Charles, William and Christian Bacher, Jr., having grown to manhood, became 
associated with their father in the operation of this bakery, which quickly developed into 
a large business under the direction and energy of their combined youthful and ambitious 
efforts. 

About 1907 Mr. Christian Bacher, Sr., retired from active business life, but until 
the time of his death, in November, 1914, he always took special pride and interest in the 
success that his sons attained in their special efforts to please the most exacting families 
with the quality of their bread. 

To-day Bacher Bros.' name is a household word in most of the best homes through¬ 
out the city. 


Schwartz Brothers & Company 

Foremost among the firms who have had a part in the upbuilding of the trade of 
New Orleans in Latin America is Schwartz Brothers & Company, importers and exporters 
of all classes of dry goods, which occupies the building at 100 Magazine Street, corner of 
Canal. This firm was probably the pioneer in introducing New Orleans goods in Central 
America, and was founded about twenty-one years ago by Leon E. Schwartz and the late 
Victor Herbert. 

The commercial travelers of the Schwartz firm were always assured of a cordial 
welcome, and they were men who understood the people and their customs of living and 
doing business. Thus the house intrenched itself firmly in the good opinion of the 
leading merchants and business men of Mexico, Honduras, British Honduras, Guatemala, 
Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Panama, Cuba and other sections. The Schwartz firm has always 
been one which had a great deal of civic pride, and in building up its own business in 
Latin America and the West Indies it also looked after other lines, assisting merchants of 
New Orleans to get orders and serve customers whenever possible. In this way it served 
to build up the New Orleans trade in numerous lines through its enterprise, and is greatly 
responsible for the cordial relations which now exist between merchants of those 
countries and those of New Orleans. The Schwartz firm also did a great work in building- 
up its domestic trade in the Gulf States and elsewhere. It has been a consistent worker 
for the spread of New Orleans commercial influence throughout all parts of the South, 
and has aided in every civic object to increase trade. 

The present members of the firm are Leon Schwartz and Herbert J. Schwartz, the 
house’s business being carried on without incorporation. 



No financial institution in the South is more widely or more favorably known than 
the Hibernia Bank and Trust Company of New Orleans, which occupies the magnificent 
building at Carondelet and Gravier Streets, the first real skyscraper of the Crescent City. 
The Hibernia Bank is headed by representative financiers of New Orleans, men who have 
made their fortunes by conservative investment in the resources or lands of Louisiana 
and the Gulf States; men of foresight and imagination who have foreseen the future of 
timber, land and swamp development as population surged into the great Southern waste 
lands. The Hibernia Bank has the confidence of the investing public, and has always 
been loyal to New Orleans and to the interests of the State of Louisiana. Through its 
civic pride the city was enabled to float a bond issue of $7,000,000, whereby it was 
possible to complete its magnificent sewerage and drainage system. The Hibernia and 
other banks formed a syndicate to market the bonds at par, and later came to the rescue 
of the city in financing the $9,000,000 bond issue for the refinancing of the public indebt¬ 
edness. The Hibernia was also one of those banks which came first to a realization of 
the worth of the great reclaimed lands of Southern Louisiana, and its stockholders and 
President John J. Gannon are the owners and developers of the world’s greatest orange 
grove, created from sweet marsh lands situated in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans. 


SCENE AT HARVEY CANAL AND LOCK, 

Harvey (Jefferson Parish), La. Opposite Louisiana Avenue, New Orleans. 


Hibernia Bank and Trust Company 




















cy has been found practical and 

ibably the largest theatrical enter- 
ident, and Martin Beck, Managing 
lines are indelibly linked with the 
, began their operations more than 
et emerged from the experimental 
theatrical authorities freely credit 
ift of this form of entertainment, 
he President’s office is still main- 
lie circuit, until they now not only 
any foreign countries. This policy 


important cities of this country 

popular.^ headg of the Orpheum 

prise in this country, 

Director. Both are pi 
history of this most m 
a quarter of a century ago, 
stage, and their success 1— 
them with having played 
Their first theatre was in 
tained. Other cities, 
operate from coast to 
has enabled them to c 


Due to the confidence the managers of the Orpheum Circuit have evidenced in the 
future of the South, New Orleans ranks as one of the most important vaudeville centers 
of the United States. Since 1901 the circuit has operated a high-class theatre in St. 
Charles Street, known as the Orpheum, where the best known and most talented artists 
from the amusement world have been seen. Commencing with the season of 1917-18, two 
theatres will be operated — the present Orpheum, where the highest class of artists and 
attractions will be presented, and the Palace, at Iberville and Dauphine Streets (formerly 
known as the Greenwall and Triangle), where popular priced vaudeville and feature and 
comedy pictures will be offered. When the season of 1918-1919 opens the circuit will be 
in the new Grpheum, now in course of construction, in University Place, which promises 
to establish a standard for future theatre building. This edifice is to be strictly a theatre, 
and will be the headquarters of the circuit’s interests in the South. 

The site for the new Orpheum represents an outlay of $85,000, and the entire in- 


odern form of amusemei 
when vaudeville h 
lias been so pronoum 
important roles m 
San Francisco, wl 
ver, were soon incl 
coast, but maintain ofh 
ffor the world’s greatest novelties as 


martin beck, 

lanaqinq Director, 




MORRIS MYERFIELD 
President. 




The managing director’s office is in New York, the center of things theatrical in 
the United States. 

New Orleans has a close interest in anything pertaining to the Orpheum Circuit, due 
to the fact that Colonel C. E. Bray, who, in later years, has been the first lieutenant of 
Mr. Beck, first introduced high-class vaudeville to local theatre-goers and was the 
Orpheum’s resident manager for several years, before being called to more important 
duties. Colonel Bray selected the site for the new Orpheum and represented Mr. Beck 
in the purchase of the Palace, and thus has had the distinction of introducing popular 
as well as high-class vaudeville to New Orleans. 

The Orpheum’s policy is two performances each day, one at 2:15 o’clock and the 
other at 8:15, with prices ranging from 10 to 75 cents. The Palace offers three shows 
daily, the first at 2:30 o’clock, the second at 7 and the last commencing at 9 p. m., the 
prices ranging from 10 to 30 cents. 


vestment, including furnishings, decorations and the 1 
from a half million dollars for this one theatre alone 
in keeping with the policy of the circuit to erect one n 
cities with an established future. St. Louis and Kan 
New Orleans in this distinction. 

The Palace is the most recently erected theati 
Orpheum, and is modern in every respect, and its pure! 
inspection of its adaptability to vaudeville and pictur 
Popular priced vaudeville and pictures the managers a 
tc the comfort of their patrons. One of the requisites 
modern, with perfect accoustics and with a full view o 

With two vaudeville theatres in operation New » 




uluifllitlflhimikliiiiijliii 


Page Eighty-Two 






















































































































































































































































































































































































































































Suiting auii (Construction 













The Standard Export Lumber Company, Ltd. 


Foremost among the corporations which have striven for the 
ascendency of New Orleans as an export center of pitch-pine lumber and 
naval stores is the Standard Export Lumber Company, Limited. Under 
the active management of Edgar R. duMont, Vice President and Man¬ 
aging Director, this company has been a most consistent and inde¬ 
fatigable worker for improved lumber-loading and cargo-accumulation 
facilities for New Orleans, and was the moving factor in obtaining the 
old Walnut Street lumber wharf, the first cargo-loading lumber facility 
on the river front at New Orleans. In the days when there were many 
abuses to be corrected in free time for cars and the most hasty move¬ 
ment of lumber, timbers and logs for export, Mr. duMont and the 
Standard Export Company were in the front rank of those who were 
fighting for and did finally accomplish reforms which have been of 
lasting benefit to the lumber export trade. Had it not been for the 
European war it is no doubt that these accomplishments would have 
resulted in New Orleans being the leading lumber exporting point on 
the Gulf or South Atlantic. 


EDGAR R. duMONT, 

Vice President and Managing Director. 


The Standard Export Lumber 
Company, Ltd., was incorporated 
under the laws of Louisiana on Feb¬ 
ruary 10, 1906, and has enjoyed an 
excellent business since its incep¬ 
tion. The business has been both 
export and coastwise in character 
and was noted as being the largest 
movements of lumber from the 
pitch-pine section. Mr. duMont has 
been the Vice President and Man¬ 
aging Director since the foundation 
of the company, and has been its 
guiding spirit as well. He is reckoned as a progressive and far-seeing business 
man of unusually affable and pleasing disposition. He has a host of friends in 
the pitch-pine belt, and is generally recognized as a leader in all matters 
pertaining to the export lumber business. 

The great success of the Standard Export Company is due in a large 
measure to the ability of Mr. duMont and his associates to convince the big 
English buyers of lumber that the Southern pitch-pine, or yellow pine lumber, is 
the best lumber with which to build wharves, public buildings and constructive 
interior and exterior work. Through this means, Mr. duMont was able to make 
connections with the largest lumber-distributing houses in the British Isles, and 
yellow pine won a great victory. 

During all this period Mr. duMont and his associates were seeking to 
improve lumber-exporting conditions at New Orleans. A great deal of their 
business was shipped at the outset through Gulfport, Pascagoula, Port Arthur, 
Galveston and other ports, hut Mr. duMont sought to bring his cargoes to 
New Orleans because of his love for the city and pride in the growth of her 
commerce, and because he realized that better tonnage arrangements could be 
made through New Orleans than elsewhere. Many cargoes and large packet 
shipments were made through New Orleans, but the full-cargo business had to 
go to other ports, because of the lack of cargo-accumulating facilities here; but 
as far as possible the Standard Export Company has striven to give New Orleans 
the preference, and has always made this city its headquarters with its hand¬ 
some suite of offices in the Whitney-Central Building. 


Gulfport and Pascagoula, and is on most friendly terms with every 
leading lumber manufacturer^ the Southern States. In fact, the 
counsel of Mr. duMont is regarded as so valuable that he is never 
omitted in any conference of lumber managers. His advice and counsel 
was largely responsible for the creation of the successful organization 
known as the Southern Pine Association which has been instrumental 
in doing a great deal of valuable work for the lumber industry m 
preparing the factories for the European market after the war and in 
spreading the good qualities of Southern yellow pitch-pine through the 
industrial centers of Europe and Great Britain. Particular success has 
been attained in the conversion of the European cities to the value 
of the creosoted wood block as a paving material, and it is probable 
that hundreds of cities in war-stricken sections of Europe will be 
repaved with this lasting material. The Standard has recently been 
quite active in promoting the rehabilitation of the lumber-exporting 
business to Europe through the good offices of the Allied governments, 
and numbers of large contracts have been booked already for shipment. 


The business of the company has become so enlarged recently that it has 
been necessary to divide it into two departments, viz.: Those east of the 
Mississippi River and those west of the Mississippi River. In the Western 
Department there are offices at Beaumont, Orange, Port Arthur and Galveston, 
Texas all of which report to the main office in New Orleans. In the Eastern 
Department are the branches at Pascagoula and Gulfport, both of which are in 
Mississippi. The company has alliances with several large lumber mills at 


GENERAL OFFICES, STANDARD EXPORT LUMBER COMPANY. 


Page Eighty-Four 


























BOGALUSA 

A Permanent Paper Manufacturing Center 


anH nf t T Sfi 1 COnfr ° nted V' 6 founders of the Great Southern Lumber Company 

and the City of Bogalusa was not greater than was the problem of making Bogalusa a 
l ermanent city, not one whose history would be written with the last log manufactured 

lar-p 6 min—th JT 11 ph ) nt ' ! l Was with this idea in view that it was decided to erect one 
tbrnfi^h Lrlh rS h S ,H- ln th ® world—rather than several smaller units distributed 
through the timber holdings ot the Company. It was recognized that, if all the waste 
ce\ etoped in the operations of the sawmill could be concentrated at one point, the 
possi nlities ot its remanufactiire into useful by-products would be increased many fold 
Such concentration was commercially practicable only if this waste was developed and 
could be handled at one mill. 

The capacity of the sawmill when 
first started was about 700,000 feet of 
lumber daily. This capacity was later 
increased to 1,000,000 feet per day 
the narrow edgings that otherwise 
would be burned. Then a shingle mill 
was put in to make shingles from the 
trimmings from large timbers. A box 
factory was later installed to use up 
short pieces of lumber that would be 
almost worthless in the general lum¬ 
ber market. 

It will thus be seen that all along 
due consideration was being given to 
the utilization of waste material; but 
the fire in the burner continued to 
burn without appreciable diminution, 
and it was decided to look further into 
the waste-saving problem. It was also 
seen that, no matter how far the reman¬ 
ufacture of waste material was carried 
as outlined above, it was limited to the 
operation of the sawmill itself and 
must come to an end when the mill 
ceased cutting. What was particu¬ 
larly desirable and necessary was to 
find some means of making permanent 
the life of a city of 12,000 inhabitants 
by creating an industry that would 
Very soon after the mill was started, 
lath machinery was installed to utilize 
utilize waste material so long as avail¬ 
able and yet an industry that would 
be capable of continuing after the mer¬ 
chantable timber of their holdings has 
disappeared, which will be probably twenty-five to thirty years from now. 

By the early part of 1914 the problem had reached such proportions that it was 
decided by the officials and directors of the Great Southern Lumber Company to call in 
the assistance of experts to aid in its solution. Accordingly, Arthur D. Little, Inc., a 
prominent firm of chemical engineers of Boston, Mass., was asked to make a sur\ey of 
the whole waste-saving proposition, in order to find out just what quantities were avail¬ 
able and into what products they could most advantageously be manufactured. Dr. 
Little’s engineers spent five months on the plant and in the woods gathering data on 
this subject, and incorporated it into a report of several thousand pages. of *he 

interesting, as well as somewhat disturbing, features of that report was that, with all the 




BOGALUSA LUMBER MILL. 


utilization of waste herein described, the Company was obtaining but thirty-five per cent 
of the Southern pine tree; that sixty-five per cent was left in the woods or was burned 
at the plant after the logs had been manufactured and the laths, shingles and box shooks 
turned out. 

The principal recommendation in Dr. Little’s report was that a paper mill be 
erected to utilize a large portion of the waste available for pulp-making. He also recom¬ 
mended that a distillation plant be installed to utilize the stump wood and light wood for 
the production of turpentine, rosin, pine oil, tar and charcoal. His report also stated that 
a large quantity of alcohol could be made from the sawdust. 

In the year 1912 a sulphite-process 
paper plant had been erected, but was 
not entirely successful. In 1914 the 
process was changed to what is chemi¬ 
cally known as sulphate, and in March. 
1915, this plant resumed operation suc¬ 
cessfully, and ever since then has been 
producing fifty tons of container liner 
daily. This container liner is a stiff, 
brownish cardboard that is used in the 
manufacture of corrugated packing 
boxes. 

The Bogalusa Paper Company, Inc., 
a subsidiary of the Great Southern 
Lumber Company, is now constructing 
a container liner plant at a cost of 
approximately $1,500,000, which plant 
will be just like the first mentioned, 
with the important exception that its 
capacity will be three times as great. 
While this second plant will go far 
towards using the waste material de¬ 
veloped in the plant and woods opera¬ 
tions, there will still be enough left to 
supply yet another plant to be erected 
by the Bogalusa Paper Company in the 
year 1919. By the beginning of 1920 
the Great Southern Lumber Company, 
therefore, hopes to be conducting its 
lumbering operations absolutely with¬ 
out waste. 

The Lumber Company is now en¬ 
gaged in the consideration of the best 
type of distillation process to install 
to utilize the stumps and light wood on 
their cut-over lands. A plant of this kind will very likely be put in early next year. It 
will enable the settled on cut-over land to clear the stumps and light wood from his farm 
at a profit instead of a heavy expense as now. 

Investigation is also under way looking to the location of a large alcohol plant in 
Bogalusa. 

A campaign is now being made to encourage farmers within a hundred miles of 
Bogalusa in the planting of old-field, slash and shortleaf pine trees on the swampy, 
uncultivable portions of their farms. These types of pines grow so quickly that in 
from twelve to fourteen years from the time they are planted they can be cut for pulp 
wood. It is by this means that it is expected to supply a half dozen paper mills located 
in Bogalusa for all time to come, making it easily the largest paper-manufacturing center 
in the South. 


Page Eighty-Five 





















MODERN BASCULE BRIDGES IN NEW ORLEANS 


In line with the progressive spirit evidenced by the various modern civic improve¬ 
ments undertaken and carried out by the City of New Orleans in recent years, the com¬ 
pletion of five Strauss Trunnion Bascule Bridges marks another step in keeping abreast 
of the times. The accompanying views illustrate the single-leaf Strauss Trunnion Bascule 
Bridge over the New Basin Canal at Lake Street. Similar Strauss Bridges have been 
built over the New Basin Canal at City Park Avenue and at West End Park, over the 
Old Basin Canal at Hagen Avenue and over the Channel' connecting New Basin Canal 
with the Southern Yacht Club Pen. 

These bridges were designed by The Strauss Bascule Bridge Company of Chicago, 
Ili., a firm of Consulting Engineers making a specialty of the design of movable bridges 
across navigable waterways. This firm has the largest organization in the world devoted 
exclusively to the design of movable bridges. They have acted as Consulting Bridge 
Engineers for the United States and Canadian Governments; a number of European 
Governments; many Municipalities in this country and abroad, and practically all of the 
leading Railway Companies of this country and Canada. Strauss Trunnion Bascule 
Bridges are to be found in Sweden, Egypt, Russia, Mexico, Santo Domingo, Norway, 


, * • r ri .„ otrauss Bridge is the only type of Bascule Bridge 

Denmark and other countries. he S constructed six bridges of this type, 

used by the United States Government, they having const . , , 

The Strauss Bascule Bridge, which revolves upwards in a vertical plane when 
The Strauss ,, , it ig in exac t balance in all posi- 

onening for passing boats, is counterweighted so tnat u is 

Uo„rin the case of the take Street Bridge, New Orleans, this counterwe.ght consists 

* 4 . , , ,, „ rnn ,i W a V The load upon the foundations from the Strauss 

of concrete carried above the roadvaj. i ue ioa i ... „ . , 

. . . , .mint This is a great advantage m the case of alluvial 

Bridge is fixed in position and amount, i ms is a gieat a & 

soil conditions such as prevail in New Orleans. The Lake Street Bridge is known as a 
single-leaf bridge and measures 65 feet center to center of end bearings Similar bridges 
of the Strauss type have been constructed in single-leaf spans having a length of 260 feet. 
Double-leaf Strauss spans have been built having a length of 336 feet. The largest Bascule 

Bridges in the world are of the Strauss type. 

The bridges of this type in New Orleans were constructed under the Martin 
Behrman Administration, the work being in direct charge of W. J. Hardee, City Engineer 
The Strauss Bascule Bridge Company, as consulting engineers, furnished the plans and 
snecifications. 


STRAUSS TRUNNION BASCULE BRIDGE OVER NEW BASIN CANAL AT LAKE STREET, COMPLETED 1914 


Page Eighty-Six 


























Jefferson Construction Company 

Incorporated 

1101 QUEEN & CRESCENT BUILDING 


NEW ORLEANS PUBLIC LIBRARY. 

Have been operating in New Orleans since 1906, and have erected some of the 
largest buildings in the city. Amongst those built since their organization here are the 
following: Central Public Library, at Lee Circle; City Hall Annex, Carondelet and 
Lafayette Streets; Metropolitan Bank, Camp and Poydras Streets; St. John's Church, 
in Dryades Street; Illinois Central Railroad Office Building and Sheds, on Poydras 
Street; Million-Dollar Cotton Warehouses, for Dock Board of New Orleans; all the build¬ 
ings for Loyola University, on St. Charles Avenue, opposite Audubon Park, and many 

other fine buildings. 

The officers of the Jefferson Construction Company are: J. P. O'Leary, President; 
O. M. Gwin, Vice President; Frank Hidalgo, Secretary. 


State, now having orders on its books for approximately 400,000 cubic yards for delivery 
as fast as cars and barges can be secured to handle it. 

The cut shows one of the many roads constructed with the Profit Island material. 
Owing to the fact that the production and sale of gravel and sand being closely allied to 
the other items in the material line, Mr. Thompson has from time to time added items to 
his line, until now he stocks a complete line of building material and specialties. 

His present offices, occupying the entire ground floor of the Contractors and 
Dealers’ Exchange Building, 826 Perdido Street, are central, and are, therefore, convenient 
to the contractors of the city and visiting patrons. His most recent construction work 
in this territory was the erection of the Trans-Mississippi Railroad Terminals, consisting 
of freight sheds and modern passenger stations, which are considered to be the finest in 
the South. He is also engaged in towing and dredging. Mr. Thompson’s Construction 
Department Headquarters are located in St. Louis. He recently closed a contract with 
the government and is now busily engaged in erecting two army cantonments, one at 
Fort Worth, Texas, and the other at Deming, New Mexico; also an aviation camp at Fort 
Worth, Texas. 


J. W. Thompson 

Mr. Thompson established himself in gravel and sand production in this State 
fourteen years ago. Prior to this his main interest was railroad construction work. 
Westwego grain elevators were, about this time, being constructed by him, and on their 
completion he took up the development of Profit Island, some 22 miles above Baton 
Rouge, via river. The original plant was erected with a view of supplying ballast mate¬ 
rial. Later an improved plant was erected at Anchorage, La., where commercial gravel 
and sand can be washed and sized. This plant has a capacity of 5,000 cubic yards per 
day. Owing to the bonds issued by the several parishes if this State, the demand for good 
road material has been excessive, and this plant is one of the largest producers in the 











































PLANT OF THE OTIS MANUFACTURING COMPANY, LARGEST IMPORTERS OF MAHOGANY IN THE WORLD, NEW ORLEANS, 


LA. 


J. Watts Kearny & Sons 

Among the firms of New Orleans in the building materials and supply business, the 
firm of J. Watts Kearny & Sons, of 512-526 South Peters Street, has occupied a prominent 
position for the past two generations. The company was formed many years ago by 
J Watts Kearnv. one of the most conservative business men of New Orleans, and a man 
who took a leading part in the business and social affairs of his day. It is one of the 
oldest firms in the city in its special line, and has kept up with the progress °f the 
materials and supply business, so that it is now regarded as one of the most up-to-date 
firms in the building materials line in the Southern States. The business has now at its 
l ead Mr. Warren Kearny, who has for years occupied a position of importance in the 
civic'and religious life of the city, and has been identified with numerous charitable and 
uplift movements of many kinds. The other member of the firm is E. Newton Kearny, 
who is also a business and civic leader and an expert in the business to which he has 
devoted his career for many years. In addition to carrying on the business of the fii m, 
the Messrs Kearnv have taken a prominent part in the development of mineral resources 
of Louisiana. Realizing the importance of developing a cheaper supply of lime for the 
building interests of New Orleans, the firm became large stockholders in an enterprise 
at Winnfield La which has the possibilities for the production of the largest quantities 
of lime and’bv-products to be found in the South. An immense limestone quarry is 
oDerated at this point, and, in addition to lime for building purposes, the firm is able to 
Produce ground limestone for the treatment of a certain class of sour soils in Louisiana 
and Mississippi. This has been the means of assisting greatly in the redemption of 
farming lands and the cultivation of crops which could not otherwise be produced. At 
the same time a fine quality of building stone is produced which is shipped to New 
OHeaif Ind various parts of the South where the freight rates are within reason. The 
Kearnv firm has for manv years taken a prominent part in the organization and manage¬ 
ment of th“ affairs of the Contractors and Dealers' Exchange, which was founded some 
fl ft v years ago and is the oldest builders' exchange in the South. The Messrs Kearn* 
hive been prominent in movements to see that the dealers and the consumers of building 
lulllies have deceived a square deal and that every measure of goods sold by supply men 
supplies na e - T hey were recently instrumental in bringing about a 

reformatio h/the^feaHngs^f contractors and dealers, whereby the investor and builder 

was guaranteed honest dealing. 


ALLEN TUPFER 


Few dealers in the clay products or building materials business in the country 
have the wide acquaintance and universal respect among their fellows as has Allen 
Tupper of New Orleans, dealer in firebrick and fireclay products, sewer and culvert pipe, 
subsoil drain tile, ready-roofing, tiling, wall coping, etc. Mr. Tupper started in the clay 
products business in 1886 as an exporter of clay sewer pipe. In this he was associated 
with J. S. Phipps and the firm of L. C. Fallon & Co., and through close application to 
business and his faculty of readily making and keeping friends he built up a valuable 
clientele of ever-widening scope. During the early history of his business career Mr. 
Tupper became interested in trade ethics and associated himself with various civic 
enterprises and organizations for the general upbuilding of the clay products business 
and for the benefit of the business interests with which he did business. He was a 
constant exponent of fair and honest dealing and a full measure to all of his customers, 
and was one of the most prominent members of the Contractors and Dealers’ Exchange. 

Shortly after the Cotton States Exposition Mr. Tupper became a member of the 
firm of Tupper Bros., and in 1891 succeeded to the business. In this change he again 
widened the scope of his business relations and soon became one of the leading dealers 
in his class of building materials. He became a large dealer in fire brick, both for 
export and local shipments, many of his consignments going to Cuba and various parts 
of Latin America to participate in its rebuilding. For the past ten years Mr. Tupper has 
been a successful bidder for sewera pipe for the Sewerage and Water Board, and 
thousands of feet of the sewer piping which underlays the streets of New Orleans were 
bought through his agency. Much of the water piping which supplies the 60,000-odd 
residences of the city were also sold by or through the Tupper firm. Mr. Tupper’s places 
of business are at 625-627 South Peters Street and at 620-624 Commerce Street; but, on 
account of the extent of his business, he has storage yards for building material at 
various places In the city. He is active in civic organizations and is a member of the 
Board of Trade, the Conti actors and Dealers Exchange, the New Orleans Association of 
Commerce, the Building Material Dealers’ Credit Association and the New Orleans Credit 
Men’s Association. He is also prominent socially and in the club life of the city and is 
always active in every good thing which is started for the improvement of the old citv 
which has for so many years been the source of his business success. 


Page Eighty-Eight 













the story of the delta lumber company 


,■ . 10 . V el1 f Lumber Company might be called a youngster, but it is a very 

of verv 10 US ' < ? ungster ’ wb j cb bas already grown great in its five or six years 
Uoinmnv i?f n ±U huSin *f. hte ‘ . Besides hein S a youngster, the Delta Lumber 
ionTtb? % P T e rpv \ 18 Perha P S the ou, y exclusively retail lumber corpora- 

1 mnZI ! n • l le hl ? 01 ' y , of the Delta Lumber Company is essentially 
; odern one. It is a modern-idea concern with modern methods of lumber 
handling, distribution and selling. 

One must understand just how New Orleans buvs her lumber for her 
houses in order to understand how locally unique the Delta Lumber Company 
is. I he lumber that goes into the houses of New Orleans comes chiefly from 
the small mills that are so numerous in the parishes on the other side of Lake 
Pontchartrain. These mills cannot be said 
to be wholesale propositions only, nor are 
they what might be termed mills doing a 
retail business only. They are hard to 
classify. But their classification has noth¬ 
ing to do with the fact that the major por¬ 
tion of the lumber used in the construc¬ 
tion of houses in the City of New Orleans 
and the section contiguous thereto is the 
product of these many small manufactur¬ 
ing plants possessing the priceless advan¬ 
tage of waterway locations, permitting of 
the cheap transportation of lumber to this 
city. For the most part, excepting, of 
course, the large sawmill plants of the Sal- 
mens and Poitevent & Favre and the other 
big lumber concerns that do business in this 
city, the matter of proper grading is an un¬ 
known quantity, and, more than that, a 
subject which does not interest the midget 
mill owners at all. 

This wholesale-retailing or retail-whole¬ 
saling which has been the result of the 
activities of the midget mills in New Or¬ 
leans, created an anomalous condition in 
lumber New Orleans, into which in 1910 
the Delta Lumber Company thrust itself 
organized to carry on a retail business only. 

For lumber New Orleans, as then consti 
tilted, this action was revolutionary indeed. 

A number of the largest cypress manufacturers in 1910 conceived the idea 
of establishing a line of retail yards all over the country, and it was suggested 
by Messrs. Hilliard and Watson that they form a lumber concern and call it the 
Delta Lumber Company. The former was then secretary and manager of the 
Louisiana Red Cypress Company, which sells and distributes the largest portion 
of the Louisiana cypress lumber “crop,” and the latter was secretary then, and 
still secretary, of the Southern Cypress Manufacturers’ Association. 

Up to i910 the retail dealers in lumber all over the country handled very 
little cypress, and most of the cypress sold went to what is called the factory 
trade. Cypress was not so universally used, and the association of cypress man¬ 
ufacturers were then attempting to solve the problem of how best to get their 



peerless lumber product before the home builders of the United States. And 
the formation of regular line yards was one way to accomplish this. Conse¬ 
quently the suggestion of Watson and Hilliard was followed and the Delta Lum¬ 
ber Company organized, with an authorized capital of $250,000 and the follow¬ 
ing officers: A. T. Gerens, president; E. G. Swartz, vice president; and J. A. 
Hilliard, secretary-treasurer. The first manager of the Delta Lumber Company 
was W. P. Barr. The first Board of Directors was composed of the officers and 
the late Captain John Dibert and M. L. Rhodes, who has been, since 1913. presi¬ 
dent and general manager of the concern. 

Just after the formation of the company the cypress association began its 
very active cypress propaganda, and the Delta Lumber Company, as a means 

toward the more extensive use of cypress as 
a home building material, was found to be 
unnecessary, as the retailers already estab¬ 
lished all over the country changed their 
policy in so far as the selling of cypress was 
concerned, and agreed to sell cypress just 
like they were selling all other kinds of 
lumber. From that time on the Delta 
proposition took on the aspect of a strictly 
Southern retail lumber business, and that 
is what it is today. 

The first plant was a very small one, 
consisting of a small storage yard and a 
few hundred thousand feet of lumber on 
hand. Today their storage yards in New 
Orleans have been many times increased, 
and their stocks amount to millions of feet 
of all kinds of lumber. At first a cypress 
proposition, it is now no longer so, but is 
as much a yellow pine yard as a cypress 
yard, and as much a hardwood yard as 
either. 

The success which attended the conduct 
of their business in New Orleans led them 
last year to open a yard in Baton Rouge, 
La., and they are now going to sell more 
stock to pay for the installation of at least 
four more yards in various parts of the 
South during 1917. 

Their first location in New Orleans was 
the same as the present location, except that they have yearly expanded and 
taken in more ground about their first location. Their offices and yards are on 
Carrollton Avenue, at the 1. C. R. R. crossing. 

The majority of the big Louisiana cypress manufacturers are stockholders 
in the Delta Lumber Company. 

Organized pretty much as an experiment, it has ceased to be such, and is 
now an established success, with prospects that it will show much greater growth 
in 1917 than it did in 1916. 

Sincerely yours, 

M. L. RHODES, 

President 


Page Eighty-Nine 











G. M. GEST 

The distribution of electrical energy for light, power, telephone and telegraph, 
etc., has grown with such wonderful strides during the past twenty years that it was 
causing myriads of overhead wires to be erected in city streets, and it was found neces¬ 
sary to adopt other means of distribution. The method adopted by progressive cities 
and companies was to use underground distribution. This method does away with the 
great numbers of unsightly poles, wires, transformers, etc., and helps to create the city 
beautiful. 

Of the cities which saw the need and advantage of this type of distribution, New 
Orleans was among the first. 

The Cumberland Telephone and Telegraph Company, about fifteen years ago, 
decided to go underground with their wires in New Orleans, and called upon G. M. Gest 
to install their first conduit. Doubt was expressed at the time as to the feasability of 
doing this, because of the sub-surface conditions. But all of these conditions were 
successfully overcome and the system completed. 

In going about the streets of New Orleans at the present time, one cannot help 
but see the name of G. M. Gest. His organization is engaged in installing for the New 
Orleans Railway & Light Company an ornamental lighting system fed through wires in 
underground conduits. This is one of the largest contracts of its kind ever awarded, 
and requires the employment of many hundred men. 

Underground conduit construction and the name of G. M. Gest have been linked 
together for the past quarter century. The first work of this nature started by Mr. Gest 
was in Cincinnati, and since then he has been identified with underground installations 
in all of the large cities of this country and Canada. 

A great many improvements in construction methods owe their origination to him, 
and it has been the use of these methods, coupled wih the speed of installation, that 
has helped to make the success of his* business. His main offices are in the Woolworth 
Building in New York City, and in the Power Building in Montreal, with branch offices 
in Cincinnati, San Francisco and Vancouver. 

In order to encourage interest in underground work, Mr. Gest has always been 
a large exhibitor at the expositions, the last one being the Pan-American, where he was 
awarded the gold medal. His exhibit in the Palace of Machinery, showing all types of 
underground conduit and cable installation, attracted a widespread interest. At the St. 
Louis Exposition he was given the highest award. 

He has also been represented at all the conventions of the National Electric Light 
and Street Railway Associations, and some may recall the manholes in Cincinnati and 
Montreal which he had fitted up for the entertainment and reception of the delegates. 

Over two hundred cities have been benefited by the installation of underground 
systems by his organization, and they have installed 1,000,000 duct feet or over in each 
of the following cities, in addition to New Orleans: Chicago, Brooklyn, Montreal, Win¬ 
nipeg, Reading, Toronto, Hartford, Dayton, Cincinnati, Nashville and the City of Mexico. 

His organization has often been called upon to execute a second, and many times 
more, contracts for the same company, while in some cases they have done all the 
underground work. This is a befitting compliment as to the character of the work done 
by them. 



federated lumber organizations of America, representing many hundred millions of 
invested capital. By virue of this high office he was selected by President Wilson as the 
Chairman of the Lumber Committee of the Council of National Defense, and has made 
his headquarters at Washington since the declaration of the war with Germany. In this 
capacity Mr. Downman has supervised ,the purchase of more than two billion feet of all 
classes of lumber for tile erection of army and navy cantonments and for other govern¬ 
ment purposes, and it is believed that this is only the beginning of his patriotic work. In 
;his local connections, Mr. Downman is the President of the Bowie Lumber Company 
Limited, with mills at Bowie, Bayou Des Allemandes, St. James and Ludivine- the White 
Cast e Lumber and Shingle Company, Ltd., at White Castle, La,, and the’ Jeanerette 
Lumber and Shingle Company, Ltd., of Jeanerette. The last-named plant manufactured 
about two million teet of tupelo gum lumber per annum in connection with its cypress 
operations and carries a stock of 500,000 board feet at all times. Mr. Downman is a 
director ot the Hibernia Bank and one of the backers and owners of the 8 000 acres 
embraced in the holdings of the Lakesliore Land Company of New Orleans i whfch1! 
developing the world's largest orange and grapefruit grove. This"rojert? is entirely 

ot New or ' eans ' a,,<i ««>*." 


Robert H. Downman 

A New Orleans business man who has of recent date become a prominent national 
figure is Robert H. Downman, the millionaire cypress manufacturer and for some time 
President of the National Association of Lumber Manufacturers of America. Mr. Downman 
attained prominence as a leader in industry and finance in Louisiana some years ago, 
after having become the head of several of the largest red cypress saw mills in Southern 
Louisiana, and he was honored more than ten years ago with being made King of the 
New Orleans Carnival. But since the great European war he has become a factor in both 
national and international affairs through his commanding position as the head of the 














repair line in the South. Organized a little more than a decade aback, this company has 
in recent years adopted the most modern methods known to science and is specializing 
in the repair of the largest pieces of machinery. This has been made possible by the 
discovery of the oxy-acetylene process of welding known as the Davis-Bournonville 
process, which won the medal of honor at the San Francisco World’s Fair in 1915. 
Castiron, steel, aluminum, brass, copper and various alloys are welded without com¬ 
pression and in a homogeneous union so perfect that when machined or smoothed the 
union is not discernible. It is extensively employed in welding sheet metal, instead of 
rivetting; for welding pipe lengths, doing away with thread joints, and for tube welding. 
In the repair field its value is almost unlimited in reclaiming broken, worn and defective 
castings of gray-iron, steel, aluminum, brass, bronze and other metals, either in light or 
heavy sections.' The Crescent City Machinery and Manufacturing Works to-day represents 
the best type of machine shops in the South, if not in the country as a whole. Ten years 
ago it had but one machine worth about $1,500, but to-day it occupies a large floor space 
with numerous machines of the latest and most improved types. The company is not 
only in the repairing business, but is an agent for manufacturers of welding and cutting 
producers. The present officers are: A. Vizard, President; P. A. Dubus, Vice President 
and Manager, and E. H. Ross, Secretary-Treasurer. 


Crescent City Machinery and Manfm Works 

in machlnervand SOT™ aS £ V™ ° rleans hekl a Position of little prominence 

the citv and the constants /aT' But wltk tke growth of the maritime supremacy of 
ImsiSS took on nZ added noeds ot its industries for repairs the machinery 

having become a 3 2* /lo-day it is one of the foremost industries of the city, 

naving Become a most necessary adjunct to the carrying on of the arowine aerirnltural 

in s ti tut tons ‘ o f IliM’Spm'cit enterprises embraced in the eight hundred-odd producing 
noted the Crescent f'Rv iw i J -' Among the organizations of great importance is to be 

Street which 'fs' one h* 11 "®* 7 ai J d Manufacturin g Works, of 628 Tchoupitoulas 

Stieet, which is one of the busiest and most enterprising firms of the machinery and 


BOBET BROTHERS 

Bobet Brothers, one of the oldest firms engaged in the exportation of rough 
staves, was established many years before the Civil War by one of New Orleans’ 
most prominent citizens, Mr. J. S. Bobet. 

When the war was over, the business was continued by the two sons of 
J. S. Bobet, Alphonse and E. J. Bobet. and became known as Bobet Brothers. 

These two gentlemen maintained the old firm amid all the trials and difficul¬ 
ties of that period, giving it a new prestige and strengthening the character 
which made it a standard for integrity and efficient service in this country as 
well as in Europe. 

Mr. Alphonse Bobet died twenty-six years ago, leaving Mr. E. J. Bobet sole 
proprietor of the firm. Mr. Bobet is to-day one of our most public-spirited 
citizens and is noted for his kindness and generosity as well as his efforts to 
advance the educational and material progress of New Orleans. 

After the death of Mr. Alphonse Bobet, Air. Paul B. Alker, a brother-in-law 
of Mr. Bobet, became associated with the firm as manager, where he remained 
until his death, five years ago, having been with the firm for over twenty years. 

Bobet Brothers have immense yards on the river front for the receipt, storage 
and shipment of staves, occupying three squares of ground at the fcot of St. James 
Street, and four squares at the foot of Ninth Street. 

v 

Oak staves ai‘e shipped from interior points throughout Louisiana, Texas, 
Mississippi. Alabama, Florida and Tennessee to New Orleans, and are exported 
to Portugal, Spain, France, England and Italy, the firm’s exports running into 
the millions of staves each year. 

The corps of employees with Mr. C. H. Alker, as manager, are courteous and 
obliging and endeavor to maintain the splendid principles laid down by Mr. Bobet. 












r. McCarthy, jr, 


Mr. R. McCarthy, Jr., Building Contractor, is a 
conspicuous example of what native energy, ability 
and the practical application of knowledge to 
things are capable of accomplishing in the devel¬ 
opment of the community no less than of the 
citizen. Mr. McCarthy, a product of New Orleans, 
has been engaged in the general contracting busi¬ 
ness for the past twenty-one years. During that 
period he has erected many handsome residences 
in New Orleans and elsewhere, office buildings, 
mercantile plants, and is now constructing the new 
City Hall Annex, which is to be a very handsome 
building, and the lakes at Audubon Park. His 
connection with many fire insurance companies has 
made him an authority in the matters of estimates 
on losses, and these estimates, accurate in every 
way, are invariably used as a basis in arriving at 
adjustments. 

Notwithstanding his many enterprises and the 
numerous demands upon his time, Mr. McCarthy 
is a believer in social relaxation—-believes all work 
and no play, morally, physically and intellectually, 
is utterly bad, and, so believing, encourages by 
personal example active connection with associa¬ 
tions of a social and fraternal character, of which 
he is a member of quite a number. 



THE JOHNSON IRON WORKS 

One of the most substantial and, at the same time, important industries of this 
clty New Orleans >s the Johnson Iron Works. Limited. of New Or.eans, wh.ch 

has Plant situated a. Morgan. Patterson and Sega.,, Streets. In Mglers. The company 
tor a long time occupied a leading place ,» the industrial growth o, New Or.eans. and In 

the last tew years this position ha. taken on added prominence on account of the war 

,, i nriH machine work caused by the rejuvena- 

and the strong demand for all classes of non and macmne no 

tion of the sugar industry in the Gulf States and in Cuba. The Johnson Iron Works has 
one of the most modern and best-equipped plants in the Southern States. Listed in its 
equipment is a large shipyard for the building and repairing of steel and wooden vessels, 
a machine shop, forge and pattern shops, a foundry and shops for the construction and 
repair of boilers, tanks, pipes and all classes of machinery and supplies. The Johnson 
Iron Works was established in the year 1850, and has never changed its location. On 
several occasions it has been forced to increase its capacity to meet the demands of 
business, this being particularly the case since the war in Europe. The officers of the 
Johnson Iron Works are: Henry D. Stearns, President; Wilmer H. Johnson, Secretary 
and Treasurer, and Warren Johnson, Consulting Engineer. 



LIONEL FAVRET. 

Among the general contractors of New 
Orleans none is more prominent than 
Lionel Favret. The remodelling of the 
Citizens’ Bank Building and the Union 
Stock Yards were recently completed by 
Mr. Favret. 



W. A. DILZELL. 

Prominent Electrical Engineer and 
Contractor of 625 Poydras Street, who 
designed and installed the beautiful Pris¬ 
matic Fountain at West End Park. 


M. Picheloup, Jr. 

A New Orleans boy who has attained 
success in the contracting business is 
M. Picheloup, Jr., of 3909 Dumaine Street, 
Mr. Picheloup is connected with some of 
the best known and most prominent fami¬ 
lies of the Fifth Ward, and has himself 
taken an active part in political affairs 
since he attained his majority. He fitted 
himself for the contracting business 
through several years of technical educa¬ 
tion and training, and is regarded as one 
of the leading contractors in New Or¬ 
leans. His work is noted for the careful 
supervision and strict attention to the 
demands of the client, and the foundation 
of Mr. Picheloup’s success has been his 
indefatigible adherence to principles of 
fair dealing with those who employ him. 
Mr. Picheloup has built scores of homes 
in the Second and Third Districts of the 
city, and made numerous friends by the 
thoroughness of his work. He has hosts 
of friends in all parts of the city, and has 
been noted among his employees as a 
man who is fair in his dealings with his 
labor. 



R. H. BAUMBACH, 

Manager. 

Eugene Ditzgen Company, Manufactur¬ 
ers of Engineering Instruments and Draw¬ 
ing Materials, was established in 1902, 
and is located at 615 Common Street. 


Page Ninety-Two 












American Creosote Works 

In the general creosoting business the firm in the South which has made the 
greatest strides is that of the American Creosoting Company of New Orleans, which has 
supplied much of the piling and other creosoted woodwork used in the construction of 
the city and railroad docks and wharves, as well as thousands of the creosoted wood¬ 
block used to pave some of the most beautiful streets and avenues of the Crescent City. 
The American Creosoting Company does the largest general creosoting business in the 
South and one of the largest in the nation, and its two plants at Louisville, Miss., and 
at New Orleans are equipped with the largest cylinders for creosoting to be found in the 



world. Ihese cylinders are nine feet in diameter and have facilities for handling piling 

and other timbers up to a dength of 180 feet. This is something like 80 feet longer than 

the longest creosoted timbers generally used in constructive work, the longest average 

being about 100 feet. The principal plant of the company is located at Southport, a 

suburb of New Orleans, and has a capacity for turning out fully 100,000,000 feet of 

creosoted lumber of all kinds per annum. This plant has in addition large private 

wharves for the handling of river and ccean shipping and has some three and one-half 

miles of trackage which are accessible to every railroad in the city. The plant at 

Louisville, Miss., is also of large capacity, and has one and one-half miles of iailroad 

trackage The company was organized in 1901, and the present officers are. S. W. 

Labrot President- E L. Powell, Vice President, and J. M. Van der Veer, General 

Manager The output of the two plants consists of all kinds of creosoted lumber, piling 

for wharves bridges, timbers, poles for telephone and telegraph companies crossarms 

•or Electric light and other companies using poles, electric light poles; m short, every 
tor electric ngni auu instructive work Large quantities of the timbers and 

k ‘r d °L C „Tf„ 0t ,1fe Panama S„a° work werefurnished by this company, a, well as (or 
raiSoad work in all parts of Latin America. The Stoyvesant Docks and the city wharves 
also were supplied with creosoted timbers by this company. 


FRITZ JAHNCKE, INC. 

In compiling a commercial record of the progress of New Orleans much of the 
romantic and interesting would be missing without the mention of the House of 
Jahncke,” for the Jahncke firm in its various branches has been an active part in the 
business development of the Crescent City. Founded by that stalwart old citizen, Fritz 
Jahncke, a native of Switzerland, the House of Jahncke was built up from a humble 
beginning. Old residents of New Orleans will remember the stone, gravel and building 
material yard which stood near the corner of Carondelet and Howard Avenue, occupying 
almost half a block of ground. To one side of it was the cottage which was the first 
home of Fritz Jahncke and his family, and the yard adjoining was his place of business. 
There he raised a family of stalwart sons, who are now the heads of the Jahncke 
enterprises, which include the Jahncke Navigation Company, engaged in towing, 
dredging and the leasing of barges; the Jahncke Sand and Gravel Company; Fritz 
Jahncke, Incorporated, and Jahncke & Schaff, pavers. This is probably the largest 
corporation engaged in the building material business in the South and compares favor¬ 
ably with any in the volume of tonnage handled. 

Ernest Lee Jahncke, for two terms the President of the Association of Commerce 
of New Orleans, is the head of the House of Jahncke since the death of his public-spirited 
father several years ago, and he is President of the corporations which bear the Jahncke 
name. He is an associated member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, and has 
served several terms in the Louisiana General Assembly with credit to himself and the 
city. Paul F. Jahncke is Vice President of the firms, and Walter F. Jahncke is the 
Secretary-Treasurer. Walter Jahncke has taken a prominent part in the organization 
of building materials and supply trades of the city and served several terms as the 
President of the Contractors and Dealers’ Exchange of New Orleans, one of the oldest 
builders’ and contractors’ organizations in the country. His work received recognition 
by the national oganization of the building and materials trade, and he was chosen as 
one of the highest officers of their body. More recently he took a prominent part in the 
organization of a body known as the Allied Building Council, which was for the purpose 
of raising the standard and ideals of the contracting and general supply business and 
insuring fair and square dealing to the property owners, corporations and other enter¬ 
prises who contemplated building operations in this district. Mr. Jahncke is the Vice 
President of this organization. 

Fritz Jahncke, the orignal head of this great business institution, was a man of 
great attainments, but a quiet plodder. He built up a business which at his death was 
one of the leaders in its line in the South, and since that time its importance has been 
augmented in various lines. The latest expansion of the Jahncke interests was in the 
creation of a great shipyard at Madisonville, La., where the corporation has always had 
large shellbanks and sandpits, from which it supplies its material yards at New Orleans 
by means of fleets of barges which deliver their cargoes to yards on the New Basin and 
Old Basin Canals. Ernest Lee Jahncke conceived the idea that the nation was in need 
of shipbuilding facilities to meet the peril of the submarines, and he at once organized 
and set in motion the Jahncke shipbuilding yards. Contracts were obtained from the 
Emergency Fleet Corporation, a subsidiary of the United States Shipping Board, and the 
company has now under construction several large steel and wooden vessels which are 
to be delivered within a few months. 

In spite of the calls on the Jahncke brothers for their own business interests they 
have all been untiring workers for New Orleans. 

Mr. Ernest Lee Jahncke assumed a leading part in the movement to restore the 
operation of barges and cargo boats on the Mississippi River; was the author of a bill 
which brought about the plans for the creation of a sea wall from West End to Spanish 
Fort and the prospective building of magnificent roads fronting the Lake Pontchartrain; 
was active in plans for the building of an auditorium and convention hall of large 
dimensions which is in prospect; was one of the organizers of the Joint Traffic Bureau 
of civic exchanges, and finally took the lead in attracting the attention of the War and 
Navy Departments to the possibilities of New Orleans as shipbuilding sites. Mention of 
the House of Jahncke would be incomplete without a tribute to the noble work accom¬ 
plished by the three brothers during the great storms of 1915 and 1916, the first being at 
New Orleans and the second at Mobile and along the Gulf Coast. At great expense to 
themselves they took their boats and other craft to the stricken sections and worked 
untiringly in relief and giving attention to the injured and dying. For this work they 
gained the undying admiration of the Gulf Coast residents and the respect and esteem of 
their fellow-townsmen. 



















National Sash and Door Company 

The National Sash and Door Company of New Orleans is an up-to-date factory, 
equipped with the best and most modern machinery for the manufacture of sash, doors, 
blinds and general mill work. The plant and yards cover an area of four city blocks, 
situated on the Old Basin, with office at Dupre and Toulouse Streets. The factory is 
two stories in height and has excellently segregated departments for facilitating the 
work. The materials used are principally cypress and pine, though hardwoods and other 



A**- 




rfl' 



varieties are likewise carried in stock. The output is shipped to North, Central and 
South America and to the West Indies. 

The company was originated in 1847 by Lhote & Company, the location then being 
at the head of the Old Basin. As the business developed and modernized the firm was 
incorporated as the Lhote Lumber Manufacturing Company and the plant continued at 
the original location at the head of the Old Basin until 1905. As the city had built up 
around it and there was no further room for extension, it was determined to seek other 
quarters where sufficient room for spreading to meet the demands of the trade was 
assured. The building of the new plant on its present site was started early in 1905, and 
late in the fall of that year the firm moved into their present quarters. 

In 1910 the National Sash and Door Company was organized for the purpose of 
taking over and operating the business. Much new capital was secured; a number of 
leading financial men of New Orleans became interested, so that the National Sash and 
Door Company of to-day is a first-class woodworking concern. 


King Stave Company 


. * amnestic and export trade through New 

Prominent among the dealers in stav ^ g ag well as those of Italy, Spain and 
Orleans to the wine producers ot t le ^ which has extensive yards at Eighth and 

France, is the firm of the King Stave P ’ th pest-established enterprises in its line 
Tchoupitoulas Streets. The company is (>ne ‘“ tions with mills in the hardwood 

in the Southern States and has extens 1 J ljzed sev eral years ago by J. Herbert 

districts of Louisiana and Arkans • W ell known in the stave trade throughout 

King, its President and operating head, wl o - s ' and lumber brokerage business for 
America and Europe. Mr. King was 'n t stave Company> an d enjoyed the 

some ten years prior to the organizationof f £ Coast and Ozark stave-producing 

confidence and esteem of the leading men of theUlt do . nheritancej as it W ere, since 

districts. He came into the stave ^p^muortant figures in the stave brokerage business 

his father had been for years one of the impoita g deals 0 f importance. The King 

and had been instrumental m P utt ^ s °^ d in staves for domestic production of wines 
Stave Company makes a specialty inl bandl g; ^ thig Une Tho usands of the best 

and liquors, and has attained lemaikablle . ■ yards at Eighth and 

quality of oak staves and stave bolts' "il cRy squared space These yards were 

Tchoupitoulas Streets, which cover aim United state s Public Health 

among the first to compiy with the q en enl ^ Federal 0 f flcia i s f or the permanent 
Service when the memorable campaig n]aeue to New Orleans. The yards were 

removal of the danger of an entrance of bub on c Pg^ej o£ t j le Fed eral 

thoroughly ratproofed according to th sa f es t stave yards in the United States. 

Government and are note, as bemg am.ons he satest an d Ins reports 

Mr. King is rated as an ®* p ® rt a £ ff kP n L an authority by the statisticians of the State 
on the supply of oak staves well qualified as a traffic authority, and has taken 

and Federal ^°' rei . 1 | n t 1 pe several contests of stave exporters and salesmen for elimination 
a prominent part in the charged to interstate carriers in rate adjustments and 

?CtteTeSton'o car "and matters portnining to tree-time allowances. Mr. King is 
Somlnently connected In business and social circles and Is act.ve in all matters pertain- 
ing to the upbuilding of New Orleans institutions. 


JACOB ZIMMERMAN 

A contracting firm at present engaged in difficult work for the New Orleans Board 
of Port Commissioners is that of Jacob Zimmerman, of 18 East Forty-first Street, New 
York This is one of the oldest contracting and engineering firms in the Eastern States, 
having been formed in 1862 by Jacob Zimmerman, the senior member and one of the 
most competent engineers in America. The present work of the Zimmerman firm ts ^\ e 
construction of the wharfhouse of the magnificent marine cotton terminals of the Dock 
Board, a facility which will enable the New Orleans cotton factors and exporters to 
control the exportation of a very large portion of the cotton crop of the South through 
this port. These wharf facilities are an adjunct to the cotton terminals and warehouses 
already in operation, which have in themselves attracted hundreds of thousands of bales 
of the fleecy staple to New Orleans from plantations in Oklahoma, North Texas, Alabama, 
Mississippi, Georgia, Florida and Western Louisiana which in former years went to 
Galveston, Savannah and Brunswick. The Zimmerman firm specializes in heavy concrete 
foundation work and building of reinforced concrete structures. Its work at New Orleans 
has been considerable of an engineering feat on account of the varying stages of the 
Mississippi River and its depth at the water’s edge. The work at New Orleans is one 
of the Zimmerman firm’s first contracts in the Gulf States, as they have hitherto confined 
their energies to the work in the New York district. Most of the heavy concrete and 
marine terminal work of that section was participated in by the Zimmermans. The firm 
is composed of Jacob Zimmerman and G. Albert Zimmerman, and the local work is in 
charge of the latter. The contract presupposes the expenditure of several hundred 
thousand dollars, and the Zimmerman firm has been engaged on it for a number of 
months. It is giving employment to more than two hundred men daily, and has a large 
and adequate equipment for all sorts of harbor and terminal work, both at interior and 
seaboard points. 



Page Ninety-Four 














H. W. BOND & BRO. 

Among the moot tenable of the contractors who have in charge the erection of 

r: :r u,i,> ; the city - ** - -«. * . B ,.„z tms z ,z 

ha ,Z T , a "* busl ”« s "> »« Orleans for the past twenty years and 

l a scon true e„ . number of the mode! markets which have been designed by city 
Arclntect E. A. Christy. These markets are designed give the maximum of clean,iZ 



JEFFERSON MARKET. 

Being Erected by H. W. Bond & Bro. 

and sanitation as well as freedom from flies and other contaminating insects and are 
of steel frame construction to insure stability and durability. The structural steel for 
these buildings was furnished by the Ingalls Iron Works of Birmingham, Ala., which is 
represented at New Orleans by J. Watkins White, who has his offices in the Hennen 
Building. Mr. White is a man of great ability as a constructing engineer and has 
furnished structural steel for many buildings both in the Crescent City and throughout 
this section. The Bond firm is at present building the Jefferson Market, one of the best 
public markets in the South and the most modern in New Orleans. It is situated at 
Berlin and Magazine Streets. Other contracts for the city and Federal governments 
are the New Basin Canal Office Building and the repair work at the Federal Building in 
Canal Street. The offices of H. W. Bond & Brother are at Room No. 9 in the Contractors 
and Dealers’ Exchange Building, of which organization the firm is a member. 


GEORGE J. GLOVER 

As one look about New Orleans’ skyline he sees what might justly be termed the 
monument to the activities of George J. Glover, for of the skyscrapers erected in New 
Orleans during the past fifteen years the Glover firm has built the greater majority. 
Mr. Glover is more than a contractor. He is what the French would term an entrepreneur. 
In short, he is a handler of money for constructive purposes as well as a general con¬ 
tractor; for it is said of Mr. Glover that he built himself and his business up to the 
magnificent proportions it now enjo 3 r s by his ability to finance himself and so arrange 
his affairs that he always came out on the right side of the ledger. Mr. Glover is one of 
the first general contractors of New Orleans to engage in the business on a large scale. 
His work is by no means confined to New Orleans, although he may be rightly called 
the Father of the New Orleans Skyline.” His specialty is the designing and construction 
of office buildings, railway buildings, heavy masonry, pile foundations and 
factories, and among those built by him are the Hibernia Building, the Whitney- 
Central, the Canal Bank, the St. Charles Hotel, the Grunewald Hotel and the Perrin 
Building. He also designed and constructed the American Sugar Refinery, the Cumber¬ 
land Telephone and Telegraph Building, the Warren Easton High School and a large 
number of buildings for the occupancy of manufacturing plants, power plants, schools 
and other structures. At present he has a large force of men engaged on the construction 
of the new Newcomb University, which will face Audubon Boulevard and be an adjunct 
to the reservation of the Tulane University. This contract is for the erection of several 
handsome buildings, the total aggregating more than $1,000,000. Mr. Glover has a large 
and efficient organization, and the quality of his work has been recognized by con¬ 
tractors, engineers and investors in all parts of the country, and he is a member of 
the American Society for Testing Materials, the Contractors and Dealers’ Exchange and 
the local organization of general contractors. 


HAMPTON REYNOLDS 

Few engineering firms of the South have had the uniform success of Hampton 
Reynolds, a contracting engineer who was for some time the City Engineer of New 
Orleans Mr. Reynolds has been engaged in many of the large engineering and construct¬ 
ing contracts which has been carried on by the city and the Orleans Levee Board during 
rvf; P£ Z te + n f ears - Mr - Reynolds has a wide knowledge of soil conditions and the 
difficulties to be encountered in engineering contracts which are given in the Southern 
Louisiana district. His firm nas built miles of levee work in various sections of South 
Louisiana and is at, present engaged on the construction of a canal which is to enable 
the Public Belt Railroad to get its coal from the Alabama coal fields by water so as to 
greatly reduce the fuel bill of the city. Another important work of Mr Reynolds was 
the dredging of drainage canals through the lower parts of the city, in Algiers and 
e sewhere for the completion of the magnificent sewerage and water system which has 
contributed so much to the maintenance of good health conditions in New Orleans during 
the Behrman administrations. B 


OLE K. OLSEN 


One of the most substantial and progressive citizens in New Orleans is Mr. Ole K 
Olsen. For years he has been actively engaged in the handling of building specialties 

n wi ha ? ® upphed these materials for practically all fireproof construction 

in this city, and that he lias met every requirement, has been fair, liberal and has 
lonestly discharged every obligation between himself and those having business relations 
v ith him, as more than evidenced in the remarkable success with which he has conducted 
a large and rapidly growing concern in New Orleans for the past 15 years. 

A Dane by birth, Mr. Olsen is a graduate of the Polytechnical Academy of Conen- 
hagen, one of the most celebrated educational institutions in the world, and since 1902 
has been a resident of this city, where his popularity and his influence are ever on the 
increase. 


Page Ninety-Five 












Page Ninety-Six 









































































jJniUtHtrial 




MENTE AND COMPANY 


As an importer of jute bagging the firm of Mente & Co. of New Orleans is one of 
the leaders, as well as one of the pioneers of America. Mente & Co. are primarily 
manufacturers of bags and bagging, and while their importations of jute are peihap.-> 
the largest in the country for any one house, yet this laree business is merely incidental 
to the turning out of the millions of 
bags in the plant of the company. Two 
large factories are occupied by the 
Mente corporation, one being at South 
Peters and Euterpe Streets, occupying 
some long, low-lying buildings which 
take up almost a square of ground, and 
the other plant and warehouses (of 
almost equal size) in the Third Dis¬ 
trict, in Montegut Street. The Mente 
firm gives employment to several hun¬ 
dred men and girls in the city, besides 
a large force of traveling and office 
men and its foreign representatives. 

Its importations of jute have been 
often in cargo lots, and the firm is 
noted for supplying the major part of 
the jute bagging used in baling the 
immense cotton crops of the South, as 
well as that for the sugar and rice 
operations of the Gulf States. Cuba and 
Porto Rico. Since the commencement 
of the great European war the Mente 
factories have been running day and 
night for months at a time, and have 
had a hard time keeping up with their 
orders. This is on account of the great 
boom enjoyed by the sugar and rice 
industries and the tremendous ad¬ 
vances in the production of those com¬ 
modities due to the high prices they 
commanded and the remarkable de¬ 
mand for them. Mente & Co. has made 
remarkable strides in the development 

o* its production and distribution since the war began and has shared in ri 
measure the big orders receive from the Allies nations. Many improvements have been 
made to their plant during this period and its capacity greatly enlarged. On many 
occasions it was extremely difficult to obtain supplies of the precious jute from India 
on account of submarines, but importations went on despite the risks. 


o+ohiisherl in New Orleans more than twenty 
The Mente Bag Fa ^ a ^ .^”0 New' Orleans from Cincinnati, where it was 
years, having moved in th Pre sident, and E. W. Mente. It was attracted 

operated by E. V. Benjamin ^ magniflcen t facilities for handling full cargoes of jute 
to New Orleans on account _ ,,_arm tr>p snlenrlirl 


DOWNTOWN PLANT OF MENTE & CO. 


and other bagging and the splendid 
rail and water distributions possessed 
by the port and city. It was started in 
a relatively small way, but as the cot¬ 
ton and cotton seed and meal and the 
rice and sugar industries took on 
greater and greater importance the 
business grew by leaps and bounds. 
Year by year the quarters had to be in¬ 
creased as new territory was invaded 
and the scope of the distribution of the 
jute bagging was widened. New ma¬ 
chinery was obtained, scores of new 
employees and operatives were added 
and the floor space of the plant was 
doubled and tripled and then doubled 
again. 

The officers of Mente & Co. are filled 
with civic pride and devoted to the 
accomplishment of any endeavor to 
promote the honor and glory and com¬ 
mercial supremacy of New Orleans 
E. V. Benjanren, the President, is a 
patron of art and music, and is promi¬ 
nent as a business and club man and 
holds a high social position. He is a 
firm believer in the future of New Or 
leans and invariably works with Mayor 
Behrman and his administration in 
carrying out the broad-minded policies 
of the City Executive. He has a mag¬ 
nificent residence in St. Charles Ave¬ 
nue, at Danneel Park. E. W. Mente, 


the Vice President, is a business leader and prominent in civic work. Isaac T. Rhea, 
another large stockholder, is a prominent yachtsman and clubman and a leader in 
Carnival activities. He has scores of friends through Louisiana and the South, as well 
as in the great Northern cities. The General Manager is Julius C. Werner, who is 
rated as one of the best bagmen in the country. 


Page Ninety-Eight 





















The American Sugar Refinery 


Conspicuous among the leading industries of the South, and especially of Louisi¬ 
an; is the production and refining of sugar. In this industry the Chalmette Refinery 
of the American Sugar Refining Company holds unquestionably the most important place 

• T^! nCe the f r V ays n *hen the Jesuit Fathers introduced the cultivation of cane 
into Louisiana, when New Orleans was but a village, lying between Canal and Esplanade 
btreets, the sugar industry has grown to its present importance. 

The Chalmette Refinery of the American Sugar Refining Company is the largest 
single plant of its kind in the world. In point of equipment and modern construction 
it surpasses all others. This magnificent plant is located on a tract of seventy acres 
w hich has a frontage of over one thousand three hundred feet on the Mississippi River 
and a depth of approximately twenty- 
nine hundred feet, and is reached by 
cars running direct from New Orleans 
to a terminal on the refinery property, 
where the Company has built a station 
for the convenience of its employees. 

Vessels bringing sugar to this plant 
discharge at a wharf eight hundred 
feet in length by eighty feet in width, on 
which is a warehouse of approximate¬ 
ly the dimensions of the wharf, built 
of steel and concrete. The wharfage 
facilities provide for the unloading of 
several vessels at a time. From the 
wharf the raw sugar is conveyed by 
electrically operated cranes, of which 
there are twenty-five, to the sugar 
storage sheds or directly to the Melt¬ 
ing House. The storage sheds, three 
in number, have a capacity of 134,400,- 
000 pounds. The entire plant is laid 
out with a splendid system of railroad 
trackage. The tracks are so arranged 
as to facilitate the shipment of refined 
sugar and the receiving of raw sugar, 
when raw sugar is received by this 
method. Shipments of molasses by 
tank cars, coal and refinery supplies are 
all handled over these tracks. In all 
there are five miles of railroad track¬ 
age on the refinery grounds, thus giv¬ 
ing unexcelled facilities for the ship¬ 
ment and receiving of material inci¬ 
dent to refining operations. 

In addition to the buildings actually 

used in refining, there is a water filtration plant which occupies an area of eighty feet 
by one hundred and sixty feet. Here in large cylindrical tanks equipped with sand and 
gravel filters having a capacity of eight million gallons every twenty-four hours, is 
filtered all the water used in the refinery. The water after leaving the filters is collected 
in receiving tanks, from which it is pumped by electric pumps to all parts of the buildings 
where it is required. 

Another building of the plant is for the storage of molasses, a by-product from 
the refining of sugar. This building contains tanks of large capacity, totaling about 
thirteen thousand barrels. 

In the rear of the property are two large fuel oil tanks connected with the wharf 
by pipe lines that run through the property. Steamer cargoes of oil arriving at the 


CHALMETTE REFINERY OF THE AMERICAN SUGAR REFINING COMPANY. 


wharf are pumped into these tanks and stored and repumped to the points in the filter 
house building in which the oil is used. 

There is also a three-story building of the same general type of construction of 
all the other buildings on the property used as a machine shop, equipped with the neces¬ 
sary tools for doing the repair work required for the plant’s maintenance. This plant 
gives employment to numerous mechanics, machinists, blacksmiths and coppersmiths. 

The Company also manufactures all barrels that are used in the plant. This is 
done in a one-story structure two hundred and eighty-four feet long by one hundred and 
ffty-one feet wide, approximately thirty-five feet in height, which contains the kilns for 
drying the material which comes from the Company’s mills in Missouri and other States 

and all the modern machinery and 
equipment for expeditiously turning 
this material into finished barrels. 

Adjoining this structure is a storage 
building in which the finished barrels 
after leaving the manufacturing plant 
are stored. This three-story building, 
two hundred feet by one hundred and 
fifty feet in width and approximately 
sixty-eight feet high, has a storage 
capacity of about one hundred thou¬ 
sand finished barrels. From this bar¬ 
rel storage building, through gravity 
runways, the barrels are delivered to 
the refinery packing house building. 

Power for the plant is generated in 
another set of buildings where there 
are in operation boilers of eleven thou¬ 
sand horse-power, electric generating 
engines and pumping machines, and 
wherein there are coal storage bins of 
a capacity of six thousand tons of coal, 
a twelve-day supply. 

The refinery maintains on the 
grounds a Commissary, an attractive 
building, in which substantial food is 
supplied at cost to all employees who 
desire to patronize it. 

In addition to the main buildings, 
there are the office buildings, tlme- 
1 keepers’ building and other accommo¬ 
dations necessary for the conduct of 
the plant. The enclosed floor area in 
the group of buildings composing the 

refinery plant is in round figures thirty acres. 

In the large force employed in the Chalmette Refinery many kinds of labor are 
included. Among these are chemists, engineers, skilled mechanics, electricians, ma¬ 
chinists, masons, carpenters and painters, as well as those employed in the work of 
washing, melting, refining, boiling, assembling and packing the sugar. 

One of the most noticeable features of the great plant is the evident care the 
Company has paid to the comfort and convenience of its employees in the arrangement 
for light, ventilation, accessibility and safety of machine operations. 

Said to be the most modern and best-equipped refinery in the world, employing 
over a thousand people, with operations involving large outlays for supplies and labor, 
the success of the Chalmette Refinery will always be closely connected with the pros¬ 
perity and prestige of the City of New Orleans and the State of Louisiana. 




















Revere Rubber Company 

Organized in New Orleans barely more than thirty years ago, the Revere Rubber 
Company has developed not only a rapid but a most wonderful growth. It is now one of 
the largest and most prosperous rubber manufacturing concerns in the United States, 
and has factories in Chelsea, Mass., and Providence, R. I., while its main offices are now 
in New York. The Revere Rubber Company has branch offices at Chicago, Philadelphia, 
Kansas City and New Orleans, the local office looking after the great volume of rubber 
goods business which is handled throughout the South. After the organization of the 
Revere Rubber Company in this city, the business was carried on at first on a small 
scale, but the field was an ever-enlarging one and the Revere sales managers weie not 
slow in getting after the business. Connections were made in the East, resulting in the 
establishment of its main offices there, and soon the Revere goods became known for 

their high standard of workmanship and durability. 

The Rever Rubber Company specializes in mechanical rubber goods, consisting of 
belting, hose packing and all kinds of rubber and rubber goods material. Thousands of 
feet of the fire hose of the Revere Company have been sold to the fire departments ot 
the various cities throughout the country and have given great satisfaction. Goods 
suitable for the oil field trade, the cotton oil mills, cotton gins, sawmills, paper mills, 
textile mills and numerous and sundrry other classes of manufacturing plants are also 
produced and have a large sale throughout the country, both North and South. The 
Revere Company also manufactures and sells quantities of drug sundries, rain clothing, 
rubber soles, automobile and other tires; in fact, it handles “everything in rubber.” The 
Revere Rubber Company has set a high standard of manufacture, and the quality of its 
goods must come up to representations at any and all times. Revere goods must be the 
very best on the market, and they are keeping up to this rule rigidly. If any article has 
the Revere Rubber trademark and stamp it is always found to be well made and 
fabricated of the very best materials obtainable. In fact, it is an open secret in the 
rubber goods trade that the Revere goods go beyond their standard of excellence, so that 
too much cannot be said of the high quality of the goods. Rubber goods manufactured 
by the Revere Company have withstoood the hardest and most strenuous usage tor 
months and even years, and in many cases are almost as good as the day they left the 
factory This is particularly true of the Revere hose, which is able to withstand the 
highest pressure of water without breaking under the terrific strain. Some of the best 
fire hose in use in the New Orleans Fire Department was bought from the Revere 
Company years ago, and much of the belting, hose and packing used in the various plants 
of the Sewerage and Water Board came from the Revere factories. They have all given 

, lpnt a ervic e and are a great demonstration of the quality of Revere goods. Numbers 
excellent s • private industries are using Revere goods, and the 

of the factories of the c ity^^ an h d ey 0t £ ;; e e r ^ good as the best and defy competition from the 

umform impressm ^ ex ' ellence 0 f materials. The business of the Revere Rubber 

Company in the New Orleans branch has shown wonderful growth and the sales are 

beyond all expectations and increasing month after month. 


Myles Salt Company, Ltd. 

M,es salt „as Hecoiue a 
has utilized as her storehouse for tins old-as-the 

esting parishes of Louisiana. _ „ 

. j * W pntv-five miles on an air line from 

In Iberia Parish, less than one hunc re< a ^ ^ purity of its sa lt deposits, 

New Orleans, is Weeks Island, famous or ^ Wleliczka> Ga licia. Weeks Island 

rivalling in the latter respect the great wUh head offices in New Orleans. 

i* -ned and operated by Myles Sadt Company ^ ^ ^ mine wag the late 

The founder of the company and __^ 



INTERIOR VIEW OF OUR MINES. 

Gen. F. F. Myles, a life-long believer in the great natural resources of the State and a 
pioneer in the development of Louisiana’s mineral riches. His brother, Beverly B. Myles, 
is the present head of the company. 

Mined, crushed, ground and screened into the various grades best suited for the 
multifarious uses to which salt is put, it is shipped from Weeks Island to practically 
every section of the United States, where its great purity has created an ever-increasing 
demand for it. The national habit of eating ice cream is responsible for the great 
demand for salt during the heated term, although its use is by no means confined to 
that period. Its natural purity makes it the peer of table salts, and, for the same reason, 
it is utilized in many important industrial processes, while the hydraulic-pressed blocks 
of rock salt afford a ready means, either on the range or in the pen, for contributing to 
the health and well being of cattle and heep. 



Page One Hundred 






















MAGINNIS COTTON MILLS 

E. V. BENJAMIN, Owner, W. LOBER LANDAU, Manager. 

HE MAGINNIS Cotton Mills, 
specializing in Cement Bags, 
is the largest concern of its 
kind in the country. Large- 
scale specialization and stu¬ 
dious attention to detail are 
the secrets of its success. 

Covering a territory ranging from coast to 
coast and from the Great Lakes to the 
Gulf, the concern numbers amongst its 
satisfied customers the most powerful cor¬ 
porations in the cement world. 


l 1 

U iff 

r 

* if 

-a 

V ?gjp 


Indicative of the new spirit in business 
and hence worthy of special note, is the 
splendid co-operation existing between 
the management of the Mills and the em¬ 
ployees. The comfort and welfare of the 
latter are constantly a matter of considera¬ 
tion. The Mills have a grocery department, 
where foodstuffs are sold to employees at 
cost. A large restaurant is run on the 
same basis. Recently the management 
has instituted-a liberal benefit system 
embodying the principle of voluntary, 
contributory social insurance. The em¬ 
ployees pay 10 cents weekly to the Mills’ 
benefit society. In case of illness they 
receive the attention of specialists, and 
when necessary, treatment in the pay. 
ward of a hospital. Wages of members 
on the sick list are paid in full by the 
management for twenty weeks, which pe¬ 
riod may be extended at the manage¬ 
ment’s discretion. In case of the death 
of a member, the Mills pay $100.00 to the 
dependents. 

In short, the Maginnis Cotton Mills 
make a point of satisfaction—satisfaction 
to customers and employees both. The 
former has always been a point of busi¬ 
ness. It is the latter which is now being 
stressed for the first time. Present in¬ 
dications point to a new era in industrial 
relationships. The management of the 
Maginnis Cotton Mills takes great pride 
that here, as elsewhere, it is well up in 
the van. 


Page One Hundred and One 




















































Louisiana State Rice Milling Company 

During these (lays of tile high cost of 11 v 11 ‘tLCo 1 1 'L-counVe cheapness 
attracted to the production of nee in the Gulf Const legions °J ‘ content Quantities 
of the staple, and also because of its high percentage of nutritious conte^ 

of rice have been sent to all parts ot the nation m largest Hacking houses of the 

anything other than a cereal or a delicacy^fm^lKmns in the fanning of rations for the 
country have taken up rice as a substitute to c . , being sent week 

soldiers. Millions of cases of these rations have been put up andl are being s ^ but 

by week to the Sammies and Tommies ot the A < ■ America to the Argentine, 

shiploads of clean rice, packed in sacks. are t( de p e nded on' the production ot¬ 
to the West Indies and to other sections which hither to ° bave ‘ one up from 

the East Indies and Chinese fields to get then s pi • one half and seven cents a 

three and one-half cents per pound five years ago to S1X ^ °ne ! quant ity is 
pound on the average to-day, and a great dea ■ product and the industry by the 

SiSr StS n Rice 8 Sling CompaqwhiSh' has R,^eadjuarter. in the Liverpool & 

Godchaux was a firm believer m the future of rice J rice mills of the State to 

f00d " the CheaP6St P0S8ible 

PnCe ' At the time he conceived the idea the ^ c ®reds’ 1 ??fanners were discouraged and 
and business generally was depressed, idle and prices of rice 

seeking to engage in othei enterprises. ^ w hen free sugar and free 

Mere hardly sufficient to pay for cultivation This was mi, Abbeville. Mr. 

rice talk was rife, and Mr. Godchaux was operating a 2,0M^bairei^n^ fQr the 

Godchaux persuaded the twenty-eight larger 1 c conferences, and plants at 

betterment of the rice industry. This Mas c t° ae p at r t ® I ar S 1 |; e G ueydan> Kaplan, Jennings, 
Donaldsonville, Crowley, Rayne, Eu “ c ®i jjL i“Spiiv. This proved the turning 
Welsh, Abbeville and New Orleans werepla be pf great value in giving more 
point in the history of the rice business pro g ' lanti “ indus try. Farmers from 
confidence to farmers and bringing new life to In . igat ion plants were rejuvenated 

distant States came in and bought up old P laces - J-f began to get better prices and 
and season by season the business im P r0 ^ ed ' a * twenty-eight mills of the Louisiana 
an improved yield. The combined output of the twenty mg Increas ed demand 

company is 40.000 to 50,000 M0.poun s »°^ dw milli , , n „ , hard 

was created for rice bran, Pobsh. hulls and oth J ^ Europe and the tremendous rise 

struggle, began to make money. 10 t0 14 ce nts per pound were too high to can, 

in the price of meats and beans. Beans at 1 > to 1 Wn ^ pagt year the nce business 

and the big packers turned to . nce as ,„ a f ^ Vhis cause Packing houses having contracts 
has been given a tremendous impetus from JWs cause.^.^ ^ ^ campg and flelds have 
for supplying hundreds of mUhons of iatio to u chicken and rice, chile and nce, 

used rice as a substitute for beans.injmrk_ and nc b c combination8 . The 1916 nce 

beef and cornbeef and nce, tomatoes and nce a it was thought to be 

cop was 20.000.000 bushels in Louisiana, the large seas on. Then the 
a drug on the market at 3% Prices advanced in 

packers got busy and it was as 8% cents per pound, 

proportion and sales of cleaa 1 „ substitute for potatoes on the table of the laboring 

Rice began to be used as a subs £ nd and onions to 5 cents per pound, 

men when potatoes went to 5 and 6 cents p P Central West the value of rice as a 
This taught the housewives of the North ®, n a g ^ & dish of rice a t 5 cents as m 

staple of diet and that there Mas things caused rice prices to ascend and created 

25 cents’ worth of potatoes All of. these thing United states> showing the common 

a substantial market for nce m all sectio Louisiana style is the cheapest and best 

people that rice as prepared ^^he table mt Louisiana state Rice Milling Company 
food to he found. In this great publi_ - accomplished wonderful results. Business 

and the Southern Rice Growers Assocuatio^ at P Ka p la n was erected with a capacity 

in the country improved so much that a &g the Agnes Mill. The company is now 

of 1,600 barrels per day. This ' 01 cente r of the rice-producing industry. The 

operating three large ml ” s at R ^ p lining Company are: Frank A. Godchaux, President, 

rood Second Vice President; L. M. Simon, 

Secretary 'and^ames McWhann, Treasurer. 




Penick & Ford, Ltd. 

Peniek . Ford. Ltd..' was organised in ike 

Da. A,ter twelve years <*«•-■£ buslneBS ; The City ot New 

Z thts l.ra„c„. The huiiding a fui. -are ot ground. 

hy ZZZ was again insutheien, to 

mke r:: T\r *0 another branch factory was estahiished in 

Memphis, Tenn. _ on the water trout in Harvey. La. The prime 

Ohiect was tor the purpose o, ereetiug the iargest and most modern syrup canning 
factory in the country. Not on.y did this tactory lake care of ^ 

now is equipped with a cooperage factory capable of a production of 1,200 to 1,500 1 arre 
per day and a can plant capahie o. a production o, over 30.000.000 cans per year it has a 
private tank line, consisting of 210 modern all-steel tank cars, and has just recent 
purchased the steamer Ohio, the barges R. M. No. 7 and Relief and two all-steel barges 
which are now being constructed. The officers of this company are entitled to a lot of 
praise and credit for the energy they have spent in this wonderful enterprise, as their 
never-ending ambition has made the word “Velva” a watchword in every home. 






One Hundred and Two 



American-LaFrance Fire Engine Company 


PART OF MOTOR FIRE APPARATUS OF THE NEW ORLEANS FIRE DEPARTMENT. FURNISHED BY AMERICAN-LaFRANCE FIRE ENGINE COMPANY. 


More than fifty years ago the first steam fire engine used in the United States was 
manufactured in the Cincinnati plant of the American Fire Engine Company. The first 
hook and ladder trucks were built by the LaFrance Company, in Elmira, N. Y. Realizing 
the benefits to be derived from joining forces, these pioneer fire apparatus builders 
united into the American-LaFrance Fire Engine Company, Inc., with headquarters and 
factory at Elmira, N. Y. American-LaFrance horse-drawn apparatus is recognized as the 
standard for fire apparatus, for no better fire equipment can be made. It is no exaggera¬ 
tion to say that practically every fire department in the United States has at least one 
piece of American-LaFrance apparatus in service—the best testimony of universal favor. 

With the advent of motor fire apparatus the American-LaFrance Fire Engine 
Company was confronted with the tremendous task of maintaining its high standards 
with a then untried design of fire apparatus. With characteristic thoroughness their 


engineers attacked the difficult problem with all the skill at their command. Experience 
had taught them that building fire apparatus was a business for experts only, and the 
experts of the American-LaFrance Fire Engine Company immediately laid down certain 
fundamental principles that were essential in building apparatus capable of withstanding 
the severe service of fire department duty. American-LaFrance engineers have designed 
every essential part that goes into their motor fire apparatus, and the design is such 
that each part is stronger than absolutely necessary. 

The American-LaFrance Fire Engine Company takes no particular pride in a 
quantity production, although comparing the output of this company with that of all 
other fire apparatus builders combined shows that two pieces of American-LaFrance 
motor fire apparatus are sold to every one of all other manufacturers, and practically 
four to one of their nearest competitor. 


History of the Eureka Fire Hose 


Prior to the production of Eureka Fire Hose, in 1875, the only practical rubber- 
lined fire hose was the Boyd rivetted hose, which was produced at first by coating one 
side of a flat woven fabric similar to cotton belting with rubber, and afterwards rivetting 
the edges together. Many earnest efforts had been made to produce rubber lined hose 
with seamless multiple fabrics woven on straight looms, but difficulties had been en¬ 
countered because the hose would not sustain a high pressure. Fortunately a piocess 
was developed by the Eureka fire hose manufacturers which has stood every test and has 
won every fight for infringement of patent which the company has had to stand. In 
October, 1875, a section of Eureka fire hose was tested to 700 pounds without injury, 
a strength before unknown in fire hose, and immediately after a similar section was 
submitted with a proposal to supply 5,000 feet to the New York fire department. Facili¬ 
ties were at that time limited, but the advantage of the hose over the leather ri\ etted 
cotton and rubber hose then in use were so evident that not only was the 5,000 feet 
ordered, but additional orders were given for Eureka with sufficient time allowance to 
permit of its production. The reputation of Eureka fire hose was at once established 
and has been constantly maintained since that time as the best fire hose in the world. 
It soon became widely known and the hose went into the leading cities of the United 

States, Canada and other countries. . . , , , 

In 1876, after an exhaustive examination of various kinds of hose, a special board 
of naval officers recommended the Paragon hose, a hose similar to Eureka in all respects, 


except it has one less ply, to be adopted as the Navy Department standard. Paragon 
was exclusively used until 1885, and during that time there was not a complaint what¬ 
soever on account of unsatisfactory hose. This is a condition that all who are familiar 
with the trade know is remarkable and radically different from conditions that have 
existed since 1885, when the hose business was thrown open to public bidding. Eureka 
and its companion, Paragon, are now the most extensively used brands of fire hose in the 
world. 

These brands have gone into all sections of the United States and Canada, and 
the name Eureka is well known in various other sections of North, South and Central 
America and of Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia. It is also used by railroad and other 
corporations. Eureka and Paragon hose have not only been the most extensively used, 
but by reason of their greater cost of manufacture and general superiority have brought 
good prices, proving that it was merit, and not initial cheapness, that brought the 
demand. It is to be expected that there are some who criticize these brands, for never 
yet was there a person or a cause or an article so good that there was not criticism; 
but we do assert that there are few articles that are used under such severe conditions 
as fire hose that have received so little merited criticism, and more rare, indeed, has 
there been ground for citicism when unusual conditions were not imposed by the' pur¬ 
chaser’s specification. 


Page One Hundred and Three 




















STANDARD OIL COM 


HE STANDARD OIL COMPANY OF LOUISIANA was incorporated April 13, 
1909. The Officers of the Company are: Col. Fred W. Weller, President; 
Capt. Pendleton S. Morris, First Vice President; Mr. F. H. Bedford, Second 
Vice President, and Mr. A. K. Gordon, Secretary and Treasurer. These 
gentlemen, with Messrs. A. C. Bedford, D. R. Weller, C. K. Clarke, C. O. 
Scholder and James A. Moffett, Jr., constitute the Board of Directors. 

The Company is widely engaged in the production, transportation, 
manufacture and sale of petroleum and its many by-products. Its pro¬ 


ducing activities are mainly in the Caddo, De Soto and Red River fields of Louisiana, 
and 268 miles of pipe line connect these fields with its large, modern Refinery at North 
Baton Rouge. 


This plant occupies over 500 acres, favorably located on the east bank of the 
Mississippi River, a short distance above the City of Baton Rouge; has ample frontage 
on the River, with splendid depth of water and well equipped with dock facilities capable 
of caring for several ocean-going tank ships at one time. Approximately 200 such ships 
annually ply to various foreign and domestic ports and use these docks for the loading of 
their cargoes. The Refinery gives profitable employment to over 2,000 men. 

From this Refinery the Company is able to supply its customers with various 


petroleum products, the principal ones being Refined Oils, Gasoline, Lubricating Oils, 
Greases, Paraffine Wax and Asphalts. 

The headquarters of their Sales Department is located at New Orleans, La., 
where a large staff is employed directing and conducting the extensive merchandizing 
business of the Company, taking practically the entire twelfth floor of the Whitney- 
Central Bank Building. They also have sales offices located in the cities of New Orleans 
and Memphis, directing their sales in the States of Louisiana, Tennessee and Arkansas, 
with large distributing stations at various points in those States, and smaller ones so 
located as to serve the trade most economically through their system of tank wagon 
bulk deliveries. 

The products of this Company are marketed under their trade name, “STANO- 
COLA,” which, as will be seen, is taken from the name of the Company itself. These 
products, wherever marketed, are well known for their uniform quality, and this can 
better be appreciated in view of the care and attention given to their manufacture. 
Each and every product, and the purpose for which it is to be used, is studied most 
carefully, every batch of oil turned out being under the supervision of experts in their 
line, who watch same from day to day to see that the high standard of superiority is 
maintained. These products enter into practically every walk of life; the Refined Oils 


Page One Hundred and Four 




























PANY OF LOUISIANA 


being manufactured in different grades for specific purposes, all under the STANOCOLA 
brand, the one most commonly known being their STANOCOLA Burning Oil, which is 
used in nearly every household for some purpose or other, such as illuminating the home, 
lor cooking and heating purposes, or in the case of the farmer operating his kerosene 
internal combustion engine, the power plant which furnishes light to his house and a 
water supply from his well, or for the operation of his tractor plow to till the soil. 
Other grades of Refined Oil are utilized for such purposes as signal and switch lights on 
railroad lines throughout the country. 

Their STANOCOLA Gasoline is widely used in the operation of automobiles, motor 
boats and all types of internal combustion engines. 

Among the Lubricating Oils manufactured under the STANOCOLA trademark are 
numerous grades made to meet specific purposes in the lubrication of power plants, 
sugar mills, saw mills and cotton mills; in fact, for any condition requiring a high-grade 
lubricant they are equipped to provide the proper oil so as to reduce the cost of oper¬ 
ating the plant to the lowest point, thereby securing the greatest efficiency. One 
deserving particular attention is their STANOCOLA POLARINE brand, sold for the 
lubrication of automobile engines. Every precaution is thrown around the manufacture 
of this oil until it reaches the point of perfection which has been found most generally 
adapted to give the automobile the proper degree of lubrication, thereby enabling the 


motorist to operate his car with greater efficiency, as well as greater economy in the 
use of his motive power, “Gasoline.” 

Other products coming under the general head of Lubricating Oils are widely used, 
and made particularly for such purposes as cleansing harness and keeping it pliable; 
polishing the furniture in the home, office and elsewhere; polishing and making sanitary 
the floors in the home, public buildings and schools, where it has been shown that the 
germs scattered in the dust caused by the old method of sweeping are detrimental to the 
health of the younger generation. 

The Paraffine Wax marketed by this Company is used in nearly every home for 
sealing fruit jars, as well as in washing clothes. 

Greases are also manufactured and marketed generally for various purposes, such 
as for lubricating certain classes of machinery, as well as carriage and wagon axles; one 
of the famous brands of years’ standing being Mica Axle Grease—well known the country 
over. 

Mexican Crude Cil, being asphalt base, is used in the manufacture of paving and 
sheet asphalts, of which large quantities are now being sold in the South in the good 
roads movement in all communities. These Liquid and Paving Asphalts are marketed 
under the Company’s Trademark Brand, “STANOCOLA.” 


































Allis-Chalmers Manfg. Co. 

Although the manufacturing facilities of the Allis-Clialmers Mfg. Co. are divided 
between three large plants located in the principal industrial sections of the country, it 
would seem to one who has made a tour of the mammoth works at West Allis, Wis., 
that here alone are shops and appliances for turning out all the machinery that could be 
sold by one company in the face of modern competition. And that might be true were 
the company s activities confined to the building of power machinery alone; 
but when one considers that the Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Company is not only first 
in this field enormous as it is but also leads the world in the manufacture of pumping 
machinery, saw mill equipments, flour mill, crushing, cement making, mining and ore 
reducing machinery, electrical machinery, power and transmitting machinery, etc., it will 
be seen what giant power must be under control; what a number of great shops must be 
kept in continuous operation to provide for the filling of the stream of orders that daily, 
monthly and yearly pour in from every quarter of the globe. 

In area the works of the Allis-Chalmers Mfg. Co. cover nearly 250 acres, divided 
between storage yards, trackage, runways and actual enclosed floor space, every square 
foot of which is actively and continuously utilized in the building of machinery. The 
largest plant of the Allis-Chalmers Mfg. Co. is the new West Allis works, but there are 
other plants at Milwaukee and Cincinnati, all of which are of large capacity. 

The powerful machinery of the Allis-Chalmers works is to be found in many of the 
large industries of New Orleans and the South, and its wonderful ability to control the 
forces of nature is excellently exhibited in the various pumping stations and plants of the 
Sewerage and Water Board, which has been one of the most prominent factors in ren¬ 
dering New Orleans one of the most healthy and livable cities in the world. In the 
original installation of the Sewerage and Water Board plant there are nine powerful 
drainage pumps in the drainage department and four in the waterworks department. Six 
of these drainage pumps have a capacity of pumping 165,000,000 gallons each every 
twenty-four hours. Two of them pump 97,000,000 gallons each and two pump 26,000,000 
gallons each. In addition the Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Company have furnished the 
electrical equipment which operates the large Wood’s pumps which have recently been 
installed to supplement the original drainage equipment of the city. In the Municipal 
Water Works plant of the city there are three pumps having a capacity of 40,000,000 
gallons of water every 24 hours and one of 20,000,000 gallons. These are used in bringing 
in the water from the Mississippi River through a large pipe (48 inches in diameter) to 
the purification tank, and after the water has been thoroughly purified four large Allis- 
Chalmers vertical triple-expansion high-duty pumping engines, each having a capacity of 
20 ,000,000 gallons daily, are used to distribute the water through the mains of the city. 
Adjoining this station the city has installed a 5,000-kilowatt steam turbine, which 
furnishes electrical power for the various drainage stations scattered about the city. 
Besides this equipment, there are other types of apparatus of Allis-Chalmers Manufac¬ 
turing Company to be found in various departments of the city government of New 
Orleans. 

Throughout the city there are installations of Allis-Chalmers pumps in numbers of 
industries. 

Notable installations of the electrical department of the Allis-Chalmers Mfg. Co. 
are also to be found in New' Orleans. In many of the leading hotels, saw mills, drain¬ 
age plants and other institutions of the city and Gulf States there are also electric plants 
of size w r hich have given excellent service during their period of installation. Since the 
widespread use of petroleum as fuel, oil engines of the celebrated Diesel type have been 
installed in many places throughout the territory. Farm tractors of the Allis-Chalmers 
type are coming much into use in this territory also. New' Orleans has a large district 
office of the company occupying a commodious suite in the Maison Blanche Building. 


C. T. PATTERSON COMPANY, LTD. 

C. T. Patterson Company, Ltd., New Orleans, is the largest supply house in the 
South catering exclusively to Saw Mill, Oil Mill. Railroads, Factory and ( ontractors 
Supplies. The company was organized December 1, 1889, by C. T. Patterson, who died 
August 10, 1915, and W. P. Simpson, who is President of the company. For many years 
previous to their partnership these gentlemen represented manufacturers, whose products 
they sold to various industries, making calls at plants at stated intervals as traveling 
men. As new enterprises were established these gentlemen saw an opportunity. They 
tock advantage of it, and at the same time aided the development of the industrial South. 



There were no stocks of machinery and supplies carried in New r Orleans or in any of the 
cities in the neighboring States. Shipments had to be made from factories situated at 
long distances from the points where the user of the goods was located, causing plants 
to shut down waiting for the arrival of supplies, or making it necessary for the consumer 
to carry more supplies than was convenient. 

The idea came to these two men that a supply house in New Orleans would be a 
great factor in aiding the progress of industry and the development of latent resources. 
Acting on this thought, they organized their machinery and supply business, which at 
once was a success, for the need was found to be filled by them. The organization from 
the start has had a department for receiving orders night and day. Many a plant has 
had a break down late in the evening, telephoned its wants, and the machinery or repair 
part was shipped out that night or on the early morning train. The business extends into 
Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Arkansas. 

The C. T. Patterson Company is general Southern representative for such well- 
known concerns as Henry Disston & Sons (Inc.), Peerless Rubber Manufacturing Com¬ 
pany, The Carborundum Company, and Wire Rope Department of the American Steel 
and Wire Company. 

The officers of the company are: W. P. Simpson, President; Mrs. C. T. Patterson, 
Vice Piesident, R. E. Kelleher, Secretary and Treasurer; Charles Le Breton, Assistant 
Secretary. 


Page One Hundred and Six 




































Frrtmt 




LANE COTTON MILLS 


S. Odenheimer, President. 


IIP USE OF COTTON as a material for human clothing has 
been known since the remote ages, not only in Asia, but 
among the ancient inhabitants of America. The kind of 
cotton used in the United States is a native of Mexico, and it was 
the principle material for clothing in use with the Mexicans at the 
time of the discovery of this country. They had neither hemp, 
wool nor silk, but they wove the cotton into large webs as delicate 
and as fine as those of Holland. The art was apparently lost in 
the internal strife that followed, but the material transplated to 
the United States about the time of tlie organization of our National 
Government, has become a bond which still holds modern Europe 
largely in dependence on American industry; a dependence which 
it would gladly shake off if it could, hut which only becomes more 
hopeless in its efforts to do so. 

The growing cf cotton and manufacturing by machinery took 
date from the foundation of the United States Government. This 
production employs a vast capital in the transportation, manufac¬ 
ture and sale of the fabric, and vastly more people are now employed in 
this industry than there were, probably, inhabitants of the United States at 
the beginning of the government. 

Here in New Orleans, we have the Lane Cotton Mills, one of the most 
efficient and, in all respects, thoroughly equipped establishments of its kind 
in the South. Its progress since its inception, some sixty-six years ago, has 
been little less than phenomenal — a record of enterprise, intelligent direction 
and industrial activity and development, upon which Mr. S. Odenheimer, its 
President and moving spirit, has every reason for congratulation. It goes 
without saying that what has been accomplished in the upbuilding of this 
great industry in New Orleans could not have been done by a man of ordi¬ 
nary capacity, but rather required the efforts of a person of very conspicu¬ 
ous attainments. While in 1886 the number of spindles operated in the 
Lane Cotton Mills did not exceed 10,000, that number has now increased 
to 50,000, making the establishment one of the largest in the South in the 
manufacture of colored goods. And not only has it achieved a remarkable 
success for the aggregate of its finished product, but has von distinguished 
competitive honors for the superior quality of its fabrics, and holds to-day 
the only medal issued 
manufacture. 


by 


the Pan-American Exposition for goods of its 


Large quantities of Denims are being furnished by the Lane Cotton 


Mills to the United States Government, large quantities go for 
export, in addition to which the concern is shipping its fabrics 
into every State in the Union. The mill manufactures Denims, 
Coverts, Cottonades, Tickings and Cotton Rope; and all goods 
are guaranteed fast color. The Lane Cotton Mills is one of the 
solid, dependable enterprises of New Orleans, affording to more 
than 800 people continuous, profitable and agreeable employment, 
and this, not to speak of the prominence it gives, through its sta¬ 
bility and approved business methods, to New Orleans as a grow¬ 
ing manufacturing center. 

Mr. Odenheimer, the President of the Lane Cotton Mills, is 
one of our representative citizens, public spirited, aggressive, 
practical and far-seeing. lie has served with distinction as a 
member of the State Board of Health, President of the American 
Athletic Club; was at one time connected with the Orleans Man¬ 
ufacturing Company, and is now Vice-President of the Morris 
Bank. 






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5irui <£rl* ana. IL fc. A. 


Page One Hundred and Seven 




































New Orleans Furniture Manufacturing Co. 

Realizing the importance of New Orleans as a great distributing market for 
furniture, the New Orleans Furniture Manufacturing Company of New Orleans was 
established some fifteen years ago. The backers of the enterprise realized that some 
day New Orleans was destined to become another Grand Rapids as a furniture manufac¬ 
turing center on account of its proximity to the great forests of pine, cypress, gum and 
other hardwoods suitable for fine furniture manufacture, and because of the growing 
importance of New Orleans as an importing center for tropical hardwoods, such as 
mahogany, Spanish cedar, rosewood and the like. With the steady operation of the 
Panama Canal, it was conceded also that New Orleans would become a prime factor in 
the control of the great furniture trade of the South American countries and the Orient 
m a great measure. 

The growth and steady increase in the business of the New Orleans Furniture 
Manufacturing Company since its organization has proved conclusively that its backers 
were not wrong in their conclusions. The plant has been steadily gaining in output and 
importance and the volume of its business has necessitated constant addition of floor 
space. Under the able administration of its progressive Vice President, Mr. J. W. C. 
Wright, shipments have been augmented month by month and building after building has 
been added until the plant covers fully six blocks, besides considerable batture land 
space, for lumber and stock storage. 

The plant makes high-grade furniture of every type and class, but makes a 
specialty of high-grade office furniture. A special department is devoted to this work, 
and the factory has had remarkable success in introducing its product throughout the 
South and many other parts of the country, and also to Latin America. 

The officers of the New Orleans Furniture Manufacturing Company are: R. G. 
Morrow, President; J. W. C. Wright, Vice President; W. P. Halliday, Treasurer; 
H C. George, Secretary; A. P. Underwood, Manager, and A. C. Dressel, Superintendent. 


PLANT OF AVERY ROCK SALT MINING COMPANY, AVERY ISLAND. 
Morton Salt Company, Selling Agents, E. S. Hill, Manager, Canal Bank Building. 


The Shirer Casket Company 

As one of the comparatively new industries of New Orleans, the Shirer Casket 
Company of 422-424 Canal Street, manufacturers of high-grade caskets, is an excellent 
example of what success can be attained by a man who is a thorough master of his 
business. Newton E. Shirer, who has spent practically his business life in the casket 
business, is the sole proprietor of the Shirer Casket Company, which was started by him 
in January, 1914. Mr. Shirer resigned the office of President and General Manager of 
the Orleans Manufacturing Company in December, 1913, to establish the Shirer Casket 
Company, he having been for twenty-seven years connected with the Orleans Company. 
The Shirer Company represents an investment of $75,000 and occupies the building at 
422-424 Canal Street, running back through the block to No. 434 Common Street. The 
plant is modernlv equipped in every respect and turns out daily 30 to 35 high-grade 
caskets manufactured from the best quality of cedar, mahogany and chestnut, all hard¬ 
woods. All are expensive and first-class goods,, no cheap coffins being produced in the 
Shirer factory. Handsome burial garments are also manufactured and the firm has a 
complete jobbing line of handsome casket hardware, trimmings bronze and steel caskets, 
eic Everything is high-garde and expensive in quality, and the firm does not cater to 
the cheap trade. Its product is sold to the leading undertakers of the South, the sales 
amounting to fully $150,000 per annum. Three salesmen are on the road for the firm: 
A. J. Shirer, who travels Alabama, Georgia and Florida; W. E. Johnson, who has the 
Texas territorv and John H. Stricklin, who has the leading cities in Mississippi, Ten¬ 
nessee and Louisiana in his line. The high-grade casket business of the Shirer firm has 
grown rapidly and is in a prosperous state. Newton E. Shirer, the proprietor, is a native 
of Zanesville, Ohio, and came to New Orleans in 1886 to become the superintendent of 
the Orleans Manufacturing Company, and subsequently president and general manager. 
Prior to that time he had been in charge of the woodworking department of the 
Cincinnati Coffin Company, one of the largest coffin manufacturers of the Queen City. 


O’Connor & Company, Ltd. 

An organization which has been a pioneer in the auto-building enterprise of New 
Orleans is that of O’Connor & Co., Limited, automobile repair factory and wagon shops 
of Julia Street, between Camp and Magazine. The enterprise was started in a compara¬ 
tively small way back in 1882 by the late Thomas O’Connor, for many years fire chief of 
the volunteer fire companies and later chief of the New Orleans Fire Department for 
many years. In the early days it was exclusively a wagon factory and repair shop for 
fine carriages, but when the automobile business became established Henry J. Schayer, 
Superintendent, decided that automobile repairs would be the largest department of the 
business. Events have proven his judgment to be well founded, for now the factories 
are crowded with work and the operatives have difficulty in turning out work on time,, 
because of the heavy demands for auto repairing. After the death of Mr. O’Connor some 
years back, Mr. Schayer bought out the business and formed the company, using Mr. 
O’Connor’s name. Mr. Schayer became the President, and Henry J. Schayer, Jr., was 
made the Vice President and General Manager, while George W. Schayer was made Sec¬ 
retary and Treasurer. 

Remodelling of trucks and automobile bodies and general auto repair work are 
the principal branches of the business at present. Hundreds of old autos have been 
remodeled and transformed into trucks, the truck bodies being manufactured in the 
O’Connor plant in Julia Street. Demands for this class of work come from every section 
of the United States, from Maine to California, and in recent months some large orders 
were shipped to several large Mexican cities. Scores of old touring cars have had their 
bodies remodelled and been made serviceable for business purposes. Several new hose 
wagon automobiles have been created, besides a lot of fire apparatus and many other 
similar jobs are yet to be undertaken. The success of this business has attracted orders 
for fire apparatus for cities from several districts. 


Page One Hundred and Eight 









Merchants Coffee Company 
of New Orleans, Ltd. 


'zr 7 s: r- 




This concern enjovs the distinction of being the only exclusive Coffee Roasting 
Plant in the United States, confining their sales exclusively to Roasted and Ground 
Coffee, not even selling Green Coffee or kindred lines, such as Spices, Teas, etc. 

They not alone have the largest Coffee Plant in the United States, but have as well 
the best-equipped plant of its kind, having installed therein every modern piece ot 
machinery for eliminating all foreign matter from coffee. 

Their plant is also supplied with shower baths for the male employees, rest rooms 
and private baths for the female employees, and is a model of its d. 

It is built along the most advanced lines of hygiene and every sanitary precaution 
has been employed, whereby the coffee is put into the package without being touched by 

hand. 


The Leon Godchaux Co., Ltd. 

There are many firms and industries whose names are well known throughout the 
country, but none are more familiar to the general public than that of The Leon Godchaux 
Company, Limited, a corporation very appropriately named after its energetic founder, 
the late Leon Godchaux. Thought it has been close on to twenty years since Mr. 
Godchaux died, it is difficult to mention anything pertaining to this vast enterprise 
without alluding to the one whose untiring efforts laid its foundation. From a compara¬ 
tively small sugar plantation with an open-kettle sugar house, acquired in 1869, the 
business has been managed with such close attention and intelligence that to-day it has 
grown to a size where it has become in Louisiana the largest manufacturer of refined 
sugars direct from cane, being the first, through continuous efforts and experiments, to 
show that granulated sugar could be manufactured without the use of boneblack. The 
output of the several factories, all of which is disposed of through the main office, located 
in the Godchaux Building, is distributed throughout the whole country, the trade being 
as familiar with some of the brands as if same were staple articles of themselves. 


A. MARX & SONS 


Fortunes have been made in the handling of second-hand and used machinery, junk 
and scrap iron in New Orleans during the past few years, and among those worthy of 
mention in this business is the firm of A. Marx & Sons, buyers and sellers of junk at 
643-45 Tchoupitoulas Street. Mr. A. Marx, founder of the firm, is a self-made man of 
pleasing personality and keen business acumen. He was among the first to realize the 
great need of Italy for scrap iron for the manufacture of munitions, and it is asserted 
that in one season during the first year of the war he exported to Europe more than 
40,000 tons of junk. In fact, he cleaned out New Orleans and the Southern towns of their 
surplus old iron and machinery parts and placed junk of all kinds at a premium. Mr. 
Marx established himself as a junk dealer after years of steady plugging, and his recent 
successes, due to the exigencies of war, were merely the placing of the capstone of good 
judgment on the foundation which he had prepared. He had always been a believer in 
New Orleans and foremost in assisting local enterprise, and is connected with some of 
the leading firms of the city. 


Dan W. Feitel Bag Company, Limited 

The Dan W. Feitel Bag Company, Limited, is one of the leading dealers in the 
South in second-hand bags and twines, and has its offices and factory at Claiborne and 
Erato Streets, in New Orleans, with telephones Jackson Nos. 762 and 763. The firm 
deals in jute and burlap bags as its specialty, but handles all kinds of second-hand and 
used bags and twine, and has done a large and successful business during the several 
years of its existence. All agreements made in the purchase or sale of goods are 
contingent upon strikes, fire, loss of goods at sea or accidents and other delays beyond 
the control of the company, and quotations made are subject to change without notice, 
to maket fluctuations and to goods remaining unsold. The company’s responsibility 
ceases on the receipt by it of the signed bill of lading from the transportation company. 
The Dan W. Feitel Bag Company has been the means of conserving the supply of used 
bags in a remarkable manner, and in this way has saved to the buyers of bags in the 
Southern States, particularly in the sugar and rice districts an immense amount of 
capital. 


Page One Hundred and Nine 





























brewing industry is an important adjunct to agriculture, since every ingredient of the 
beer is produced on the farm. Cleanliness and pride in the quality of beer are among the 
fatcors which have contributed to the continuous success of the industry, and the produc¬ 
tion has increased year by year until it has reached 100,000 barrels of draft beer annually. 
An excellent score has been given to the brewery by both the City and State Boards of 
Health after frequent and careful examinations of all the property and its adjuncts, such 
as its garage, cooperage plant, warehouses, brewhouse, etc. The payroll of the Jackson 
Brewery is one of the largest brewery payrolls in the South, amounting to considerably 
more than $100,000 per annum. The officers of the Jackson Brewery are among the most 
conservative men of the city, including Lawrence Fabacher, President; A. Dumser, Vice 
President- Lawrence B. Fabacher, Vice President and Superintendent; Irving R. Saal, 
Vice President, and Gustave Oertling, Secretary. The management invites an inspection 
of the plant as a demonstration of what can be done in maintaining cleanliness and 
efficiency in its various departments, and is confident that a visit will show it to be one 
of the best appointed and managed breweries in the country. 


Columbia Brewing Company 

The Columbia Brewing Company was organized in 1898 with Chas. Kant, President; 
J D. Kenney, Vice President, and John Rittenmeier, Secretary and Treasurer, as its 
officers. If has a capacity of 65,000 to 75,000 gallons, and its product is all consumed 
locally. The plant is on Chartres and Elysian Fields Streets. 


THE JACKSON BREWERY 

Among the manufactured products of New Orleans for which the Crescent City has 
attained a justly-merited reputation is the celebrated Jackson beer. This is the product 
oi the Jackson Brewery, situated in one of the best-designed and most complete beer- 
making plants in the South, occupying the square bounded by North Peters, St. Peter, 
Jefferson and Wells Streets. The Jackson Brewing Company was established June 8th, 
1891, by Lawrence Fabacher, who has since been its President, and the success of its 
product has been due to the utilization of the best materials, such as malt, rye and hops, 
and the best talent in the mixing of the brew. President Fabacher believes that the 


National Brewing Company 

As an institution of New Orleans which believes in the trademark, “MINO (made 
in New Orleans), the National Brewing Company of New Orleans takes the highest rank. 
It is of New Orleans from President to its most humble employee, and stands for New 
Orleans at all times. The plant, which is one of the most modern and best-equipped 
breweries in the South, is situated at Gravier and Dorgenois Streets, occupying the block 
bounded in addition by Broad and Perdido Streets. The stockholders are all local 
business men and the plant was built entirely by union labor. The President of the 
National Brewing Company is Charles A. Wagner, one of the most substantial business 
men of New Orleans and a man who has won the confidence of his associates through 
many years of application to his affairs. He was one of the original organizers of the 
company in the year 1911, when it was made a going concern with a capital of $250,000. 
A magnificent building was erected, modern and fireproof in every respect and the last 
word in scientific brewery architecture. It was designed to combine the application of 
cleanliness and hygiene to business, and every part of the brewery is kept immaculately 
clean. The massive copper stills and utensils in the brewing equipment are spotless and 
kept shining like the prize kettle of the most dainty housewife. This same care is 
characteristic of the management of the plant in all of its departments from the brewing 
department to the bottling works. The brewery employs sixty-nine men in its various 
departments, besides a staff of drivers and salesmen. Its annual payroll is more than 
$95,000, all of which goes among New Orleans families. The product of the National 
Brewery is of the higest standard and has gained a splendid reputation for merit and 
quality. Besides President Wagner, the officers of the National Brewing Company are: 
Albert Werner, Vice President; H. C. Osborne, Treasurer, and A. C. Daubert, Secretary. 


Page One Hundred and Ten 














































AMERICAN BREWING COMPANY 

lrent ZZTr ’"l °' SUCCeSS ' Ul l,US "’ eSS -nder the same ma„, g e. 

. t. Such is the record ot the American Brewine Company of New Orleans This ts 

a record to be proud of, and the brewery has come to he identified with New Orleans 

as one of the prominent institutions of the citv For thP hr 

is for the on tiro lit f y ’ the past twent y-seven years—that 

President C 2 v T have been Edward G, Schlieder, 

esident, U. Keen, Vice President, and J. T, Boulet. Secretary and Treasurer, The 


' 


INTERIOR OF BOTTLING PLANT OF THE AMERICAN BREWERY. 

plant of the company is situated in Bienville Street, and occupies a large part of the 
block running from Bourbon to Royal Streets, with offices and stables in the adjoining 
block, facing Bourbon Street. The American Brewery has the largest storage capacity 
of any brewery in the South, and also the largest refrigerating plant. Regal Beer is the 
product of the company, and it is bottled in what is acknowledged to be one of the most 
sanitary and modern plants in the country. It is packed in light, sanitary cartons for 
delivery and a large portion of the output is handled in kegs, which are kept scrupulously 
clean and free from from harmful influences. The city delivery service is complete to 
the last detail with an equipment of motor trucks which deliver to any part of the city. 
The company has perfected it to such a degree that their slogan has become Ordered 
in the morning, delivered by night.” This applies to any pait of the morning up to the 
forenoon, and the promptness of the company’s delivery has made it hosts of fiiends. 


Standard Brewing Company 

Taking front rank among the breweries of the South is the plant of the Standard 
Brewing Company, which occupies the greater part of the 500 block, between South 
Johnson and South Prieur Streets. The Standard is another of the home institutions of 
which New Orleans is justly proud. It was organized by Charles Wirth in 1898, and was 
financed and built by New Orleans capital exclusively. Charles Wirth has been its 
President ever since the establishment of the brewery, and the other officers are: 
Henry Armbruster, Vice President, and J. D. Wirth, Secretary and Treasurer. More than 
8100,000 is paid out annually by this company in salaries, and there are over 100 persons 
on the payroll. Mr. Wirth has made the feature of his business the absolute purity of 
all the ingredients which go into the product. Only the best materials are used and 
special care is exercised in all branches of the brewery that every piece of machinery is 
immaculately clean at all times and that the employees keep themselves clean and neat 
in so far as is possible. The city department has built up a large and steadily growing 
trade throughout New Orleans, and a large country trade is being built up through the 
State of Louisiana to regular out-of-town customers. Speedy delivery of orders is another 
one of the strong points of the Standard Brewery management, and both automobile 
trucks and wagons are utilized to cover the ground in a hurry. 


Consumers Brewing Company 

The Consumers Brewing Company was inaugurated in April, 1904, and has a 
capacity of 200,000 barrels. The officers are: Julius Wyler, President; Frank Kruse, 
Vice President; J. J. Egloff, Secretary; John J. Grover, Treasurer, and Henry Reininger, 
Superintendent. 


Page One Hundred and Eleven 




























Albert Weiblen Marble and Granite Co., Inc. 


When 
opposite I 


the visitor to New Orleans sees the magnificent gray stone Post Office, 
.afayette Square and facing the City Hall, he is reminded of the wonderful 

quarries of Stone Mountain, Georgia, which 
are owned by Albert Weiblen, of New Or¬ 
leans. This edifice is only one of the many 
which have been erected of Georgia stone 
furnished by the Weiblen Marble and Granite 
Company, Inc., which was established in 
1889 with offices and plant at Nos. 501 to 
525 City Park Avenue. The company spe¬ 
cializes in the manufacture of interior and 
exterior building work in marble, granite and 
other stones. Some of the largest contracts 
executed in the Southern States have been 
handled by this firm, the New Orleans Post 
Office being one of the most important of 
recent years. The company is also the 
largest retail dealer and manufacturer of 
cemetery memorials, mausoleums, monu¬ 
ments, altars and other ecclesiastical work 
in the South, and has also furnished a num¬ 
ber of fine memorials in Northern States. 
The business of the company is being rapidly 
extended into Latin America, where already 
some very handsome tombs have been sold. 
The Weiblen plant is equipped with modern 
machinery of great strength, and its quarries 
at Stone Mountain are among the largest in 
America. 



Bishop-Edell Machine & Electric Works, Inc. 

Two enterprising New Orleans boys who have worked their way to the top of their 
profession are the proprietors of the Bishop-Edell Machine and Electric Works, Inc. t of 
435 Gravier Street. They have built up the business by steady application and inde¬ 
fatigable energy and now'enjoy the respect and esteem of their competitors in business, 
as well as the leading firms and institutions of the city. Clarence P. Bishop is the presi¬ 
dent of the com pan v, and Lester W. Edell is the secretary and treasurer. The firm was 
organized in August. 1916, but since its establishment it has made rapid strides towards 
success. Many large and important electrical contracts have already been awarded to 
it and like every competent electrical house, the Bishop-Edell Company has had its 
hands full during the last few months, and is still rushed with business. Machine repair 
work and electrical construction contracts are the specialties of the Bihop-Edell Com¬ 
pany. Both partners are expert electricians, and Mr. Bishop was a graduate of a large 
correspondence school of Scranton, Pa., in electrical engineering. 


Dunbar-Dukate Company 

A pioneer in the canning industry in New Orleans, the firm of Dunbar-Dukate 
Company of New Orleans blazed the way to the success of numerous canning °rgamza- 
tions in the Gulf States. Commencing with the canning of oysters and shrimp, this firm 
has branched out into the canning of okra, preserved figs, various kinds of vegetables and 
syrups and has gained an enviable reputation for its products m all the markets of the 
country One of its specialties is Dunbar’s shrimp in parchment-lined cans, and this lias 
been termed “the pink of perfection in canned sea products, and their product has re- 
ivpd the hiehest grade medals in the Expositions at Pans, London and other industrial 
centers The general offices of the Dunbar-Dukate Company are in the suite 1013, Maison 
Blanche Bunding. The officers of the company are: George H. Dunbar, President; 
James V Dunbar, Vice President; E. L. Dukate, Secretary-Treasurer. All are men o 
prominence and well known for their business and social activities in the Gulf boast 
cities, where they have officiated in many public functions. 



THE ELMER CANDY COMPANY, INC. 

amp Miller K'lnier Manufacturing Company, Ltd., has changed its name to the 
Elmer S^dyOomp.n” name tetter adapted to the bueine^ The new^company 

S B°Xer d ^eSr ’ TJl'SS ,-Sfc S®.e. Manager-making 
Hiifonfof the few big businesses to be run as a strictly family concern. The principal 
product of this company is the famous “Elmer’s Chocolates, a high-grade confection 
which has a retail distribution covering the entire South. 

Orleans Metal Bed Company, Limited 

New Orleans is proud of her home institutions, and amongst them may be men¬ 
tioned the Orleans Metal Bed Company, Ltd., situated at City Park Avenue and St. Louis 
Street. Their plant occupies a large square of ground and is one of the most modern ana 
best equipped in this country, and the goods which they manufacture, both as to quality 
and finish, rank with any in this country. In fact, under the new management, which 
took charge of same in February, 1916, it has advanced rapidly until now it is one of the 
leading industries of the South, thus demonstrating what new management, modern 
equipment and prompt service will attain. Furniture dealers throughout the country, 
when visiting New Orleans, are cordially invited to visit this plant, and they will find one 
of the most modern and up-to-date bed factories in this country. 

Whitney Supply Company, Limited 

In 1883 this business was started by the predecssors of Whitney & Sloo Company, 
Limited. 

In 1904 Whitney Supply Company, Limited, was organized, as the business had 
grown to such proportions that it could no longer be run as a department of the older 
concern. The company specializes in Fire Department, Mill and Factory Supplies and in 
Link-Belt and Transmission Machinery. 

Mr. R. W. Riordan was for years their city salesman until his appointment to the 
State Board of Affairs. 

The Whitney Supply Company’s stores are at Nos. 418-424 South Peters Street, 
and the warehouses are located on the Public Belt tracks, and their facilities for handling 
pipe, iron and other heavy goods are unexcelled. 


Page One Hundred and Twelve 

















































































































































Jefferson Distilling and Denaturing Company 

Less than a decade ago the question of utilizing the black strap molasses so as to 
make it a profitable by-product of the Louisiana sugar plantations was one of the problems 
which faced every sugar planter. For years he had been either throwing away this low- 
grade product or feeding it to the stock that he had on his place. Then the process of 
mixing black strap with alfalfa and cottonseed meal in mixed stock feeds was developed. 
This gave a demand for the black strap at a price around three to four cents per gallon, 
which was considered a big figure. Then the chemist stepped in and discovered that black 
strap molasses would make good alcohol. This was the beginning of the renaissance of 
the distilling business in the New Orleans district, and the Jefferson Distilling and 
Denaturing Company, whose plant is at Harvey, La., was among the first to take 
advantage of it. About the time of its establishment the war in Europe came on, and 
every alcohol factory in the country was tested to its capacity to fill ordersf for the 
powder factories. The once-despised back strap began to soar in price, and jumped by 
five and ten cents a gallon until it is now almost seven times its original prices. Every 
alcohol factory is begging for it, and few can get a supply either from Louisiana or Cuba. 

The Jefferson Distilling Company is one of the fortunate few who had the foresight 
to contract for long terms for the product of large plantations in Louisiana, Texas and 
Cuba. Its plant at Harvey is one of the most up to date in the world, and for months it 
has been working to capacity day and night to keep up its race with orders from powder 
factories. It occupies several large buildings, covering more than ten acres of ground, 
and. at the rate of its development it is predicted that it will have to take in more space 
within the next few years. It has a large force of skilled employees and operatives, and 
has, in addition, a supply of tank cars and boats which bring its supply of black strap 
from all parts of the country. Its laboratories are noted in the distilling business for 
their completeness and the skill of the experts in charge. 

Not contented with guaranteeing a market for the molasses output of plantations, 
the Jefferson Company has had a leading part in the revival of corn planting in Southern 
Louisiana. When it was projected, the planting of corn in the replanned dmtnctsi of 
Louisiana was more or less of an experiment. A few land men were planting a few 
acres in corn to demonstrate the value of the soil and attract corn farmers from 
Northern corn belts and sell them lands. Then the big demand for grain alcohol came 
for industrial purposes. The Jefferson Company’s promoters announced that they would 

ake all he co^n that could be raised in Southern Louisiana at a good figure, around 
take all the corn d fl in those days, though not so considered at 

75 cents per bushel. Tt ■ bushel. But at 75 cents per bushel 

this time, when corn is ccommand mg $1.70> * W ^ ^ Jefferson Company 

the corn piling, of com. resulting in making 

o, the biggest corn 

:r n „f 2^0— and prices fon ^ ~ ~ ST £ 
been a valuable aid to the country, as w ];| business in New Orleans and 

who have tor years been w.th^the ^ o( (he de[unct 

Company 



Pelican Ice Company, Ltd. 

cold storage industry in the city of , Ne ) v ^nnoL-iihie feet of space located on the 
capacity and the cold storage ts about 50 ».“%“ b, '„Has a 'atmnage among the 
Terminal tracks, accessible to all pa ts ^ 1 e y, ompany is probably the best 

IXZ or 8 . rd^hfSlw^Planflocated at 1561 St. Louis Street, with 
Chas. H. Behre, President and Manager. 


International Distilling Company, Ltd. 

abnornml’deveiopmenwiuelto^the^E^uro^eari^arl^he^p^nt^I^the j 

SLSSSS company "Si STIS 

which burned several years ago. 

in rebuilding the distilling plant its capacity was greatly increased and its em- 
, ' „ The management of the International was fortunate in being 

ablfS close^ largecontracts for black strap molasses at a time when the prices were 
comparatively low and since the wonderful demand for alcohol has arise because of t 
necessity iov "the manufacture of high-grade explosives both for Europe and America tte 
distillery lias been operating at its fullest capacity day and night to keep up with its 
orders The company is equipped with the latest and most modern machinery, and ha 
a staif of chemS second to none in the country. Some of the leading business men 
capitalists of New Orleans are at the head of the institution, which has now taken its place 
among the foremost in Louisiana. Wesley E. Lawrence, its President, is a young 
vigorous man of great ability and keen business acumen. The Secretary is Leon P. 
Pfeifer, who is in charge of the city office at 806 Maison Blanche Building. 




Page One Hundred and Thirteen 














ISTROUMA HOTEL 

Replete with historical and natural attractions, Baton Rouge, the State Capital of 
Louisiana, is one of the most appealing cities of the South to the tourist and business 
visitors. It is in the heart of one of the richest farming sections of Louisiana, the seat 
of culture and refinement for generations and the home of some of the most illustrious 
sons of the Southland. Serving this section is the Istrouma Hotel of Baton Rouge, which 
has long been noted as one of the most modern hotels in Dixie Land. Its accommodations 
are comfortable; its cuisine unequalled and its service the equal of that of any hotel in 
the country. Alex. Grouchy, the popular Manager of the Istrouma, is both a good hotel 
man and a good citizens. On several occasions he has been called upon to serve his 
people in public capacities and is now the Mayor of the Capital City. Mr. Grouchy’s aim 
is to make his hotel the home of the numbers of tourists who come to Louisiana, now 
that the automobile highways are completed. Mr. Grouchy was instrumental in obtaining 
the Jefferson Highway for Baton Rouge, and his efforts will, no doubt, be amply rewarded 
when the auto tourists from the Middle West begin to come by scores and hundreds, as 
are expected this winter. The facilities of the Istrouma Hotel are being equipped to take 
care of this class of travel, as well as the legislators when the General Assembly is in 
session, for the Istrouma has been the home of the Assembly for several generations. 
The hunting, fishing, boating, motoring and golfing attractions of Baton Rouge are being 
thoroughly advertised, and the State Capital will, no doubt, be one of the most popular 
stop-overs for the Jefferson Highway tourists en route to New Orleans from Winnipeg, 
St. Paul, Kansas City or other points. 


The Farrnbacher Dry Goods Company 



The Farrnbacher Dry Goods Company 
enjoys an exceedingly large patronage in 
Baton Rouge and surrounding territory. 
The head of the firm is Solon Farrnbacher, 
who is also President of the Baton Rouge 
Transportation Company, President of 
Glenmore Light and Power Company, 
President of Greater Baton Rouge Realty 
Company, President of Dixie Mercantile 
Company, President of the Chamber of 
Commerce for years, and member of the 
following organizations: Masons, Elks, 
Knights of Pythias, Woodmen of the 
World, Redmen and B’nai B’rith. 


D. D. PEABODY 


The naval stores industry is one that is very little understood in New Orleans, 
although there are no less than eleven concerns engaged in this business in this city, 
handling rosin and turpentine and other products of the pine tree, amounting in value to 
over $8,000,000.00 a year. 

Prior to the Civil War nearly all the rosin and turpentine manufactured in 
America was produced in the Carolinas. The industry has now moved southwest, 
following the belt of the long-leaf yellow pine forests into Mississippi, Louisiana and 
Texas. The last large forests to be found in the United States which have not been 
turpentined are in Louisiana and Texas, and this business is one which will very largely 
increase in New Orleans and vicinity for years to come. 

It might not be out of place to mention Mr. D. D. Peabody, with offices 321 Hibernia 
Bank Building, who. having been identified with the naval stores business in New Orleans 
for the past eleven years, has probably done more towards bringing buyers to the market 
than any other man. 


Mrs. Martha J. Gould 

Among the city officials whose office has 
been the means of improving the status of 
the laboring classes, there is none who de¬ 
serves more credit than does Mrs. Martha J. 
Gould, the Inspector of Factories of New 
Orleans. Mrs. Gould is an indefatigable 
worker, and much of the success of the de 
partment in improving the conditions under 
which girls and women work is due to hei 
energy. During her administration every 
factory in the New Orleans district has beer 
inspected at regular intervals and great 
stress has been laid upon the necessity of 
cleanliness, in sanitary plumbing, rest rooms 
for female employees, proper fire protection 
and fire escapes on all buildings used for 
factory purposes and fair treatment of 
women workers. The administration of Mrs. 
Gould has eliminated the employment of all 
boys and girls of school age, so that the 
official has done much for the future citizen¬ 
ship of New Orleans by aiding in the com¬ 
pulsory education of children whose parents 
might be disposed to live off the earnings of 
these minors. 



Consumers Electric Light and Power 

Company 

The Consumers Electric Light and Power Company as a corporation was formed 
in 1911 and started out with approximately 3,000 customers, mostly situated in the business 
section of the city. Since that time, by prompt, courteous and efficient service, its busi¬ 
ness has increased by leaps and bounds, and its distribution lines now extend into 
various parts of the residential section of the city. Its customers now number over 5,000 
an increase of more than 66 2-3 per cent in this short time. As said above, this has been 
due mainly to the efficient service of the company, but can also be ascribed to the very 
considerable reduction in rates during this period and to the great forward strides made 
by the City of New Orleans through the up-to-date administration of its affairs by the 
Mayor and his co-workers. 

The present outlook of the company is exceedingly ‘bright, due to the prosperous 
conditions of the city, and aided by its very attractive office and showroom,' located on 
one of the main thoroughfares, at No. 116 Baronne Street, where a full and complete line 
of every electrical device and household appliance known to science is carried in stock. 









Prominent (Drlrantans 













HON. PAUL CAPDEVIELLE 


L AWYER, STATESMAN, SOLDIER and public servant. These four attributes may 
be given the public career of the Hon. Paul Capdevielle, State Auditor of Louisiana 
since 1904 and again re-elected in 1916 for a four-year term. Mr. Capdevielle’s public 
career dates back 40 years, when he was first appointed a member of the Louisiana State 
School Board of 1877, which was a most important designation, since at that time the 
schools of the State were in the process of reorganization after years of carpet-bagger 
and negro domination and misrule. Prior to that time his business had been insurance, 
he having been the President of the Merchants’ Insurance 
Company of New Orleans for more than thirteen years, giving 
up his professional career as a councillor at law in order to 
serve in this capacity. 

Born of distinguished French colonial lineage, Mr. 

Capdevielle’s family had for generations been prominently 
connected in the public affairs of Louisiana. He was born in 
New Orleans January 15, 1845, and educated at the Jesuits’ 

College in this city. Graduating in 1861, he immediately 
joined the service of the Confederacy, serving with honor and 
credit to his company and regiment. Several times he was 
brevetted for gallantry and bravery on the field of battle, and 
at the close of hostilities his services were much sought by 
the former comrades, who had formed an admiration for his 
sterling qualities of friendship and loyalty. Mr. Capdevielle 
was an unflinching champion of the rights of his city and State 
and its people in their contest against negro and carpet-bagger 
misrule, and while practicing law, after being graduated from 
Tulane University he made numerous new friends through his 
devotion to the rights of his people. He built up a large prac¬ 
tice in a few years, and it was to leave this he was called to 
the Presidency of the Merchants’ Insurance Company, a local 
enterprise in which many of the leading dealers and business 
men of New Orleans were interested. He continued in this 
capacity after his appointment to the School Board and as a 
member of the Board of Commissioners of the Orleans Parish 
Levee Board. He resigned from the Levee Board to accept 
the Democratic nomination as Mayor of New Orleans in 1899, 
in which office he served until 1904. Many improvements to 
the city were under discussion during the administration of 
Mayor Capdevielle, among them the authorization of the 
Sewerage and Water Board, which, through various bond 
issues, has created a pure filtered water service which is 
second to none in the country, and a system of drainage which 
is handling millions of surplus gallons of water annually and 
has reduced the water level in New Orleans from a few inches 
below the surface to a depth of fully thirteen feet. 

Numerous public buildings, such as fire houses, schools, 
markets and bridges were built under this administration, and 
the way was paved for many civic betterments which have 
been carried to successful completion under the four successive 
administrations of Mayor Martin Behrman. Mayor Capdevielle 

was called upon to meet many difficult situations during his regime as Chief Magistrate 
of New Orleans, among them being labor and other troubles, all of which he adjusted to 
the credit of himself and the city. During the negotiations the Mayor conducted himself 
along high planes of citizenship and loyalty, and made friends among all parties 
concerned. 

Leaving the office of the Mayoralty, Mr. Capdevielle was appointed by the then 
Governor Newton C. Blanchard as the Auditor of Public Accounts of Louisiana. This 
was in 1904, and it was generally regarded that the appointment to this high State office, 
carrying with it such responsiblities, was a recognition of the able management of city 
affairs while at the head of the administration. Mr. Capdevielle has always been proud 
of his French ancestry, which is of noble origin, and he improved every opportunity 



* mnrp closely the bonds of friendship 

given him during his public career to c rench His great success in this work, 

existing between New Orleans people and w hich the city could assist French 

especially in the establishment of chai amilies received official recognition from 

mariners and the poorer Frenchmen and their £a “f® f S ’ t r h e e Ce ^?oS of Honor in 1902, the 
the French government. He was giv official from the French Embassy, 

distinguished honor being conferred in pe . - King Oscar of Sweden 

who came to New Orleans tor he purpose^ thew^e year. « Crosg o£ 

Commander of the Order of Saint Olaff for special services 
rendered to subjects of the Kin* of Sweden. Shortly after, 
wards the United Daughters of the Confederacy presented to 
Mr. Capdevielle the Cross of Honor as a recognition of his 
gallant conduct while a Confederate soldier. He had also 
rendered service to the Confederate soldiers after the war by 
assisting them in obtaining pensions for the needy veterans 
and in the establishment of the Confederate Veterans Home at 
Camp Nicholls, on beautiful Bayou St. John. In 1904 the 
degree of Doctor of Laws was conferred upon him by the St. 
Louis University. This was an acknowledgement of his serv¬ 
ices to the bar of Louisiana while in the Constitutional Con¬ 
vention. 

On entering upon his duties as a State officer, Auditor 
Capdevielle found it necessary to establish many important 
changes in the accounting systems of the State. His excellent 
business training as the head of the large insurance company 
at New Orleans served him in good stead in this difficult task 
and made it possible for the Auditor to establish systems which 
were a great improvement over former accounting of the office. 
These systems and the discoveries made in the loose methods 
of rendering State accounts were the commencement of a 
bitterly fought-out struggle between the beneficiaries of the 
lax systems and the Auditing Department, which has gone on 
unceasingly during the four administrations of Auditor 
Capdevielle. Little by little his plans worked out, so that 
special traveling auditors were appointed on recommendation 
of Mr. Capdevielle and every department of the State govern¬ 
ment put under a rigid check. The State Bank Examiner 
and his forces were also organized on recommendations of the 
Auditing Department, and further safeguards thrown about 
the resources and funds of the State and its various parishes. 
Reports from tax collectors began to be more and more fre¬ 
quent as these reforms were carried into execution and the 
revenues of the State and parish were more secure and more 
regularly accounted for. It is estimated that these improved 
checking systems resulted in a saving of hundred of thousands 
of dollars annually in revenues and gradually forced a read¬ 
justment of assessments on such a regular basis that tax 
dodgers began to feel the pinch of inexorable forces, and the 
State received the benefit. In all of these reforms the State 
Auditor worked quietly and diplomatically, so that the forces which were combatting 
them rarely knew that it was his brain that was the inspiration of them and was laying 
the plans whereby they were being enacted. They had a widespread influence upon 
legislation and the progress of the State; for, after the Supervisors of Accounts had been 
established in office, the next step was that which led to the abolishment of the fee 
system of sheriffs and tax collectors and placed them all on a strictly salaried basis 
This was another reform which had been the dream of Auditor Capdevielle for years 
as he could see how the State’s funds and the funds of the parishes were being dissipated 
by the system which allowed the sheriffs and tax collectors the fees of 10 per cent of 
tax collections. Mr. Capdevielle always held this to be unjust to the taxpayers and 
a dangerous form of power in the hands of tax collectors. Mr. Capdevielle was married in 
1878 to Miss Marie Emma Larue, and six children resulted from the union. He is a mem¬ 
ber of the K. of C., St. Vincent de Paul Society, Sodality of the Holy Virgin and Elks 


86 


One Hundred and Sixteen 








Hon. James J. Bailey 

A leading member of tlie bar and one of the hardest workers for Democracy in the 
State of Louisiana, Mr. James J. Bailey had further honors showered upon him in his 
selection as Secretary of State in the primary held in January. The vote cast for him 

in that election was gratifying not only to the 
candidate as a personal tribute but to the bench 
and bar of the entire State. Giving freely of his 
time, labor and brains, Mr. Bailey has been at all 
times in demand because of his oratorical powers, 
and made a record second to none while a member 
of the State Legislature. A solid business man of 
affhirs, he believes in Louisiana and its future, and 
can always be found in the front ranks in any 
movement helpful to the State. 

Possessing an attractive personality, Mr. Bailey 
numbers his friends by the hundreds, and is pre¬ 
eminently qualified to fill the exacting duties of 
the high office to Vvhich he has been chosen, and 
bids fair to have further honors thrust upon him 
whenever his name is offered for office. He is 
one of the few men in the game of politics of 
Louisiana who never fails to remember his friends 
and whose integrity is unquestioned, and can be 
counted upon whenever needed to do his full share 
This is one of the causes of his popularity among 
the voters of his native State. Mr. Bailey is a 
member of several fraternal organizations, and is 
held in high esteem throughout the State. 


H on. Frank A. Monroe 

Soldier, scholar and jurist, Chief Justice of the 
Supreme Court of Louisiana, has given much of the 
best of his life to the service of the State. First 
serving in the Confederate Army four years, being 
wounded in the service, and taking up the 
study of law after the war, he became a membei 
of the Louisiana bar in 1867. Being elected Judge 
of the Third District Court in 1872 and dispos¬ 
sessed by the ‘'Carpet-baggers” he was re-elected 
Judge of the same court in 1876, and in 1880 was 
appointed Judge of the Civil District Court, Parish 
of Orleans, serving continuously until March, 1809, 
when he was appointed Associate Justice of the 
Supreme Court of Louisiana, and succeeded Judge 
jos A Breaux as Chief Justice in 1914. Aside 
from serving some thirty-nine years as a Judge, 
this worthy gentleman has found time to do much 
for Democracy at the time when Democracy needed 
his services, dating back from the days of the 
White League of ’74, and taking an active part in 
the anti-lottery campaign of 1892. 


Ethelred Macauley Stafford 

„ the 

Senator Stafford has amassed a competency through his practice, which is large 
varied, and, in spite of that fact, he has found time 
to devote a large portion of his time to civic and 
other public work. For a number of years he has 
been a familiar figure and active in the counsels 
of the successive administrations at Baton Rouge, 
and there is hardly a man in the State who has 
made as many friends and has as few enemies in 
a political way. His work in the Legislature has 
been broad and statesman-like, and remedial legis¬ 
lation for the public good has been one of his 
strong points. Such laws as the Workingmen’s 
Compensation Act, universally esteemed to be the 
best statute placed on the law books of Louisiana 
in many years, were fathered and fostered by him, 
and he took a prominent part in the framing of 
laws for prison reform, paroling of prisoners, im¬ 
proving the conditions at the reformatories and 
asylums and other remedial legislation. Senator 
Stafford is prominently connected and a native of 
Louisiana. He has taken a prominent part in the 
enaction of laws for the promotion of thrift and 
the throwing of safeguards around the investments 
of the small savers of the State. He is an un¬ 
alterable ODponent of vicious legislation in all 
forms and has always stood for the best that has 
been proposed in bills introduced in the Legisla- 


Hon. Joseph A. Breaux 


As a jurist, statesman and citizen, Louisiana is 
indebted to the Hon. Joseph A. Breaux, one of its 
history-makers and most distinguished lawyers and 
publicists. Judge Breaux recently retired to private 
practice after having had the honor of being the 
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Louisiana 
for ten years. This valued service was a reward 
for fourteen years of service as an Associate Jus 
tice of the Louisiana State Supreme Court, which 
was, in turn, his reward of many years of public 
service. A Confederate veteran. Judge Breaux 
took a leading part in the difficult work of ridding 
Louisiana of its irresponsible carpet-bagger ele¬ 
ment and restoring to its people the control of 
the State. His work before the bench and bar 
won his preferment in many lines, and his services 
as a councillor at law were in great demand before 
his exaltation to the highest office in the gift of 
the State’s people for a legal mind. Judge Breaux 
is now enjoying a large private practice, his office 
being located in the Whitney-Central Bank Build¬ 
ing. He is a great believer in the future of New 
Orleans and the State of Louisiana, and has been 
a consistent prophet of the greater things which 
are to come when the people of the nation at large 
are awakened to the wonderful possibilities of 
Louisiana as a purveyor of fruits, vegetables and 
staple crops to the United States and the world. 













Col. Thomas J. Lewis 

Col. Thomas J. Lewis, in charge of the Recruit¬ 
ing Station for the United States Army at New 
Orleans, is one of the best known men of the 
Crescent City and has a host of friends. A grad¬ 
uate of West Point, Col. Lewis has seen active 
service since his graduation, and his field of opera¬ 
tions embrace not only service at different forts in 
the United States, but actual field service in Cuba 
and in the Philippines. Being retired from active 
service, Col. Lewis was placed in charge of the 
Recruiting Station at New Orleans, but is still a 
man of vigor and determination; he has a most 
enviable record in the service of his country as an 
army officer, is a scholarly gentleman and held 
in high esteem by the officers of the army of the 
United States, who know him best. Is a member 
of the Army and Navy Club, of Washington, D. C., 
and of several social clubs of New Orleans, and 
enjoys a wide popularity in this city. 


William Kernan Dart 

William Kernan Dart, Attorney-at-Law, member 
of law firm of Dart, Kernan & Dart. Born at New 
Orleans, La., March 16th, 1885. In addition to 
practicing law, is Professor of Constitutional Law 
at Loyola University and is Editor of the “Louisi¬ 
ana Digest,” a digest of all reported Louisiana 
court decisions, now being published by Bobbs- 
Merrill Company, Indianapolis, Ind. Mr. Dart was 
married November 19, 1913, to Miss Louise Marie 
Laplace, and is the proud father of two lovely 
children—a son and a daughter. 


John B. Meyers 


The subject of this sketch is one of the ad¬ 
mirers of the Behrman Administration. Mr. Jno. 
B. Meyers is of Swiss parentage. He attended the 
public schools and reached the highest depart¬ 
ment of the primary school, after which he oc¬ 
cupied several minor positions as clerk. During 
the Civil War he was a private in the Confederate 
Guards Regiment, doing home guard duty in this 
city. On the surrender of the city to the Federals 
the regiment was disbanded. He then secured 
employment in the sugar and molasses business, 
receiving later an interest with his employers. To¬ 
day he is owner and operator of a syrup and 
molasses refinery. Besides his regular duties in 
business, he is interested officially in church and 
Sunday school work. He is also director and 
treasurer of the German Protestant Home for aged 
and infirm. He is a director of the Seamen’s 
Bethel, Y. M. C. A., Convalescent Home, State 
Sunday School Association, Commercial-Germania 
Trust and Savings Bank, Union Stave Company 
and Commissioner of the Public Belt Railroad. 
Mr. Meyers says that he considers Mayor Behrman 
the most active Mayor he has ever known, as he 
recollects well many administrations in years past. 
New Orleans has been his life-long residence, but 
he remembers none in previous years under their 
control and management having such gigantic en 
terprises such as the sewerage and water system, Public Belt Railroad, street paving, 
beautiful new and substantial schoolhouses, public buildings, street railway transfer 
system, and many other splendid improvements. 


Jules Blanc Monroe 


Jules Blanc Monroe, Lawyer, New Orleans, La.; 
born New Orleans, March 3, 1880; son of Justice 
Frank Adair Monroe; Graduate A. B., with highest 
honors Tulane University, 1899, and LL.B., 1901; 
post-graduate work summer session Law School, 

LTniversity of Michigan; married Miss Mabel Over- 
ton Logan, New Orleans, 1907; is a member of the 
firm of Hall, Monroe & Lemann; General Counsel 
New Orleans & Northeastern Railroad Company, 

Alabama & Vicksburg Railway Company and New 
Orleans Terminal Company; General Counsel and 
Director Vicksburg, Shreveport & Pacific Railroad 
Company; President Broussard Land Company, 

Gayoso Realty Company, etc.; Secretary Society 
for the Relief of Destitute Orphan Boys; is a 
staunch Democrat; Vestryman, Trinity Church of 
New Orleans; Member American Bar Association, 

Louisiana Bar Association; Sigma Chi; Phi Beta 
Kappa; Alumni Association of Tulane University 

(ex-President), and member of the following Clubs: Boston Club, Country Club Nine 
0 Clocks, University Club and Press Club. ’ 

Resides at 1424 Louisiana Avenue, with offices in Hibernia Bank Building. 


One Hundred and Eighteen 













Leonce M. Soniat 

The subject °( thta sketch »as bon, Carrollton, 1841 . „„ Bandtather 

was one of the earliest sugar planters of Louisiana, anti in tsos bought the Tchoupltoulas 
Plantation, twelve miles above Canal Street, which plantation continued In sugar tor 

several years after the war. His father nnelec, end oonoino , 

idUier> ancles and cousins were also sugar planters, and 

he entered the fraternity in 1875, in 
Iberville Parish. Thus for more than a 
century there has always been one or 
more sugar planters in the family. 

One of his cousins, Lucien Soniat, 
realizing after the war the necessity of 
improved method of cultivation, in¬ 
vented the loose-tooth stubble digger, 
which has revolutionized the cultiva¬ 
tion of cane in this State. It has been 
greatly improved since, but the prin¬ 
ciple is the same, and it is one of the 
most valuable implements of the sugar 
planter. 

Mr. Soniat graduated in 1858 at the 
University of Louisiana, now Tulane, 
and followed a course of one year at 
the University of Virginia. During the 
war he served as a member of the 
Orleans Guards Battalion, which, after 
Shiloh, merged into the Thirtieth Lou¬ 
isiana. After the war he kept store in 
St. Charles Parish, and in 1875 bought 
the Cedar Grove Plantation of 500 
acres, which he enlarged to 2500. He 
was a member of the Police Jury of 
St. Charles Parish, and later, in Iber¬ 
ville Parish, member of the School 
Board and Postmaster for over thirty 
years. His policy has always been protection for all American industries and prepared¬ 
ness. He stands for honest administration and conservation of our resources. In the 
course of his life he has seen lower Louisiana, covered with immense foiests, gradually 
denuded to the point that timber will soon be exhausted and firewood a luxury. 

He has been for a number of years Vice President of the Louisiana Sugar Planters 
Association and of the American Cane Growers’ Association. 

Mr Soniat is proud of the record of his nephews in the French Army. One of them. 
Lieutenant George Gromier, after obtaining the Cross of the Legion of Honor in Morocco, 
served later in aviation, and was killed by the failure of his aeroplane. The other. 
Captain Bosch, was killed while charging at the head of his company. 


P. M. MILNER 

The subject of this sketch is a pioneer in the 
Good Roads Movement in Louisiana. As President 
of the Motor League of Louisiana, he fathered the 
building of the Chef Menteur Road, which was 
built with convict labor and with the active assist¬ 
ance of the Behrman Administration. The work 
done on this road has made it possible to make it 
a link in the chain of a national highway into the 
City of New Orleans, and for this purpose it is 
now being paved from People’s Avenue Canal to 
Chef Menteur. 

As President of the Louisiana State Good Roads 
Association, he did much to develop the building 
of good roads in Louisiana. 

He is Vice President of the Jefferson Highway 
Association, which promoted the building of a 
national highway from Winnipeg, Canada, to New 
Orleans, by way of Shreveport and Baton Rouge; 
also a Director in the Jackson Highway Associa¬ 
tion; also Chairman of the Good Roads Bureau oi 
the Association of Commerce, and at various times 
has been President of or a Director in every high¬ 
way association formed in this city in the past ten 
years. 

His latest work was in connection with a high¬ 
way from New Orleans to Hammond, which is 
now assured by the passage of an act of the Legis¬ 
lature funding the automobile licenses for this purpose. 

He prepared with Mr. Walter Gleason the State automobile legsilation bill. 
Mr. Milner is one of the leading lawyers of the city and State. 


L. H. MARRERO 


Among the men who have done things in Southern Louisiana the list would be 
incomplete without the name of Hon. L. H. Marrero, Sheriff of Jefferson Parish for more 
than twenty years. Sheriff Marrero is noted as 
an official whose popularity has been attested 
through successive re-elections to his responsible 
office and through his various terms of service. 

His aim has been the development of his parish 
and its resources for the benefit of the property 
holders. Sheriff Marrero has been the means of 
establishing a large industrial district in Gretna 
and along the west bank of the Mississippi from 
McDonoghville to Avondale. The output of these 
factories creates thousands of tons of freight an¬ 
nually, and their value is far up in the millions 
Sheriff Marrero is a large property holder, and 
through the development of his holdings hundreds 
of families of Italian truckers have been enabled 
to attain a competency. His policy has been to 
rent lands at reasonable rates so as to give the 
truckers an opportunity to farm on as large a 
scale as possible. The Marrero administrations 
have been productive of great prosperity in Jeffer¬ 
son Parish, and one of the latest accomplishments 
has been the creation of a modern Parish Fair for 
the development of improved breeds of cattle and 
other live stock. Sheriff Marrero was born in 
Louisiana and is prominently connected. 








George Burton Jurgens 


George Burton Jurgens is a native of New Or¬ 
leans and a graduate of Tulane University with 
the degree of A. B„ class of 1910. Mr. Jurgens 
was for several years Superintendent of a sugar 
plantation in Porto Rico, and is President of 
Geo. B. Jurgens & Co., and Secretary-Treasurer of 
the Poydras Realty Company and General Agent 
in Louisiana and Mississippi for the Missouri State 
Life Insurance Company. In the social life of New 
Orleans, he is a member of the following clubs: 
Chess, Checkers and Whist, Southern Yacht, Pont- 
chartrain Rowing Club and a number of Carnival 
Associations. Also served his native State for 
several years in the Home Guard as a member of 
First Cavalry Troop, L. S. N. G. Mr. Jurgens mar 
ried Miss Emma Qualtrough of Houston, Texas. 


LOUIS KNOP 



Louis Knop, Civil Sheriff, Parish of Orleans, born January 29, 1862, was educated 
iu the public and private schools of his native city; elected to City Council of New 

Orleans, April, 1895 to 1896; elected President of 
Seventh Ward Central Democratic Club, 1896 to 
1900; elected member of Legislature, 1900 to 1904; 
member Regular Democratic Parish Committee. 
1899 to 1908; elected in 1908 a member of State 
Central Committee, serving continuously to 1915; 
joined the old Volunteer Fire Department in 1880, 
and was an active member of the old Phoenix 
Company No. 8, being elected Foreman of that 
company in 1883, and held that office until the 
organization of the present paid department; and 
is now a member Board of Administrators of the 
Firemen’s Charitable and Benevolent Association, 
being Vice President for 25 years; President New 
Lusitanos Benevolent Association, President Sev¬ 
enth Ward Social Club, Director Choctaw Club, 
member Atlantic Benevolent Association, Director 
Homeseekers’ Homestead Association; member of 
Elysian Camp No. 555, W. O. W., member N. O. 
Lodge No. 477, Loyal Order of Moose, New Orleans 
Herd No. 1, Benevolent Order of Buffalos, and 
elected Civil Sheriff, Parish of Orleans, Louisiana, 
November 8,1908; re-elected to same office in 1912 


AL. J. BUJA 

A1 J. Buja was born in New Orleans, La., March 
10, 1867, and received a public school education. 
Mr. Buja has worked in the steamship business 
almost all the time. He is the sole proprietor of 
the stevedoring firm of J. P. Florio & Co. He is 
a Mason, Shriner, Worthy President of the Eagles, 
Trustee in the Benevolent and Protective Order 
of Elks Lodge No. 30, Woodmen of the World, 
Press Club, Druids, Motor League, Old Colony 
Club, a Director in the Hibernia Homestead Asso¬ 
ciation and Orleans Homestead Association, and 
is stevedore for the Texas Transport and Terminal 
Company, Holland-America Line, French Line and 
Simpson, Spence & Young (New York and 
London). 



Martin H. Manion 


A resident of the City of New Orleans, and born in this city; was educated in the 
public schools and Tulane University, completing his law course at the University of 
Virginia. He is now engaged in the active practice of law and as a notary public in the 
Parish of Orleans. He is also President of Manion & Co., one of the large jobbing houses 
in this city. 

Mr. Manion has always taken a keen interest in civic matters, having been for a 
number of years a member of the Board of Directors of the New Orleans Progressive 
Union and afterwards of the New Orleans Association of Commerce. 

He was also for several years President of the New Orleans Poll Tax Association, 
and during his administration the payments of poll taxes was $52,000, larger than they 
had ever been prior to or since that time. He was instrumental in the organizing of 
several street commissions for the improvement and beautifying of residential streets. 
He has always stood for the improvement and progress of the city in both material and 
artistic aspects. 

During the administration of Governor Hall he served as a member of the House 
of Representatives of the State Legislature, and during his term of office introduced and 
caused to be enacted into law some very important legislation, more particularly the law 
exempting from taxation money on deposit and in possession, the idea of which 
originated with him. The law permitting banks and banking institutions to carry on 
business in the State of Louisiana upon payment of minimum tax and the present statute 
authorizing a canal connecting Lake Pontchartrain with the Mississippi River were 
among those fathered by Mr. Manion, as well as the one which insured the municipalities 
fronting on the lake coast against squatters and the construction of unsightly buildings 
along the water fronts. Mr. Manion was a member of the Board of Directors and one of 
the organizers of the Savings and Homestead and Citizens’ Homestead Associations. 


One Hundred and Twenty 









Rev. Dr. Alexander Gordon Bakewell 


ARCHIE M. SMITH. 

Archie M. Smith, President of the Lou¬ 
isiana Society of Certified Public Ac¬ 
countants and member of the American 
Institute of Accountants. 


Few men of any profession are better 
and more favorably known in Louisiana 
than Hunter C. Leake, the eminent at¬ 
torney of New Orleans. Mr. Leake 
has attained righ rank as a corporation 
attorney, being the legal representa¬ 
tive of the Standard Oil Company 
of Liuisiana. For a number of years 
prior to accepting that post he was 
the General Agent of the Illinois Central 
System lines in Louisiana, and as such 
was thrown in constant contact with the 
leading men of the State. As the repre¬ 
sentative of the Illinois Central, Mr. 
Leake was instrumental in obtaining 
many betterments for New Orleans in 
trackage arrangements and general im¬ 
provements to the freight facilities and 
terminals. One of Mr. Leake’s greatest 
services to Louisiana was his untiring 
work as the President of the Pontchar- 
train District Levee Board, in which ca¬ 
pacity he served for a number of years. 
He brought the levees up to a high state 
of protection to the property owners, and 
during periods of high water Mr. Leake 
took personal charge of his forces and 
fought the common enemy for days and 
weeks. 


Perhaps the oldest living Epis¬ 
copal rector in the world is 
the Rev. Dr. Alexander Gordon 
Bakewell of New Orleans, in 
charge of Trinity Chapel in this 
city. Dr. Bakewell will round out 
his 95th year next December, 
God willing, he having been born 
in the good old Corn Cracker 
State on Dec. 16th, 1822. Dr. 
Bakewell is loved and revered by 
every Orleanian regardless of 
sect or creed, and his charity 
knows no denomination or faith. 
For years he has been the Chap¬ 
lain General of the Louisiana Di¬ 
vision of the United Confederate 
Veterans, in which capacity he 
has performed the last rites of 
many a comrade. Dr. Bakewell 
was himself a gallant Confeder¬ 
ate soldier, having been a chap¬ 
lain for a Louisiana regiment, 
but he is as loyal and partotic a 
citizen as he was a soldier, and 
his work has been a living exam¬ 
ple of devotion to his country. 


Hunter C. Leake 




Major Frank M. Kerr 


Major Frank M. Kerr is one of the prominent 
men of New Orleans. Educated in the public and 
private schools of the Crescent City. Major Kerr 
attended the Louisiana State University, and is a 
graduate of the Engineering School of that institu¬ 
tion, class of 1871. Since his graduation as a civil 
engineer, Major Kerr has been continuously en¬ 
gaged in his chosen profession for some forty-odd 
years, and has built up a reputation during these 
years second to none. Major Kerr is now in charge 
cf the Louisiana State Engineering Department as 
Ciiief Engineer, and to him is largely due the 
credit for building up the splendid levee system 
which now protects the State of Louisiana and the 
City of New Orleans from floods from the Missis¬ 
sippi River. Served as a member of the Board of 
State Engineers by appointment of Governors of 
Louisiana from 1888 to 1903, and, by like appoint¬ 
ment, as Chief State Engineer from 1903 to date, 
and is regarded as one of the leading men of his 
profession. In the social life of New Orleans 
Major Kerr is a member of the Boston and Choctaw 
Clubs, and is also a member of the Louisiana En¬ 
gineering Society and of the American Society of 

: i o A tlio Aoutlpiuv nf 


Col. Hugues Jules De LaVergne 


Possibly there is no better known name in either France or the State of Louisiana than 
that of De La Vergne. The subject of this sketch, Hugues Jules de la Vergne, was born 
at New Orleans, La., July 1st, 1867; is an 
Attorney at Law, graduate of Jesuits’ Col¬ 
lege, New Orleans, with A. B. degree in 1885, 

A. M. 1887, and was Deputy Probate Clerk 
at the Civil District Court for four years; 

Ph. B. 1893; graduate of Tulane University 
with LL. B. degree in 1888; he ran for Senate 
of the State of Louisiana in 1901, and was 
commissioned Major and A. D. C. by Gov. 

Blanchard of Louisiana July 9, 1904; pro¬ 
moted Lieutenant Colonel March 12, 1905; 
married May 2nd, 1895, to Marie Louise, 
daughter of Charles Edouard Schmidt, law¬ 
yer of New Orleans, and Leda Hincks. They 
have had the following issue: Marguerite, 
born September 23, 1896; Juillac Hugues, 
born November 24, 1897; Charles Edouard, 
born August 18, 1904; Marie Louise Helene 
Leda, born August 7, 1908; Jules, born 
August 17, 1911; Jacques P. Villere, born 
February 27th, 1913, and Pierre Renaud, born 
April 12, 1916. Colonel de la Vergne ran for 
Democratic nominee for Lieuteant Governor 
of Louisiana in 1916. He was commissioned 
Colonel and A. D. C. by Governor L. E. Hall 
on the 10th of March, 1916. On January 27, 

1917, he was commissioned Colonel and 
A. D. C. by Governor R. G. Pleasant. 


One Hundred and Twenty-One 





















Judge Thomas J. Freeman 



In after years when the history of New Orleans 
is written the handsome gray-stone passenger 
station of the Trans-Mississipi Terminal Co., will 
be shown as the monument to the activity of 
Judge Thos. J. Freeman, for it was as the First 
Vive President of the Texas & Pacific Ry. and the 
organizer of the Trans-Mississippi Terminal Com¬ 
pany that Judge Freeman formulated the plans 
for this magnificent $250,000 structure. In so doing 
he performed a noteworthy service to the city, 
since he beautified a decadent section and caused 
to be laid many blocks of wood block, bitulithic. 
and granite pavement. Judge Freeman is now the 
general counsel of the Texas & Pacific Ry. and the 
legal adviser of the Goulds in their railroad prop¬ 
erties. He has the distinction of having carried 
the International & Great Northern Railroad suc¬ 
cessfully through a Federal receivership, and dur¬ 
ing the period of his management of the Texas & 
Pacific the railroad was in a most prosperous con¬ 
dition. Judge Freeman is probably the best known 
legal counsellor in Texas, Louisiana or the South, 
and became a notable local figure through his 
presidency of the Association of Commerce when 
it accomplished much constructive work. 


B. A. Ledbetter, M. D. 


Alf i;ed Ledbetter, member of the State Board of Health, member of 
different local, State and National medical societies, examiner for various insurance cor- 
T 6 0t b i St known professional men in the South. Dr. Ledbetter is a 

native ol Claiborne Parish, Louisiana. He was born September 15, 1868, the son of 
Benjamin Thomas and Mary (Vanderhurst) Ledbetter. 

Dr. Ledbetter received his early education in the schools of North Louisiana, in the 
Vf £ Kea ^ ch *®’ and , la De Soto Parish. He attended Tulane University and was grad¬ 
uated from the Medical Department with the degree of M. D. in the class of ’91. 

, Immediately upon completion of his studies in Tulane University, Dr. Ledbetter 
uegan his career as practictioner in New Orleans, and is to-day recognized as a leader in 
the medical profession. 

Dr ' Ledbetter has been the chief examiner for the Metropolitan Life Insurance 
Company for more than 20 years. He has also been the chief examiner of Union Central 

b lf -tc In n Ur ^ nC a e n C t ? mP f ny f ° r m ? re than ten years > and , in addition to these important 
posts, Di. Ledbetter for a number of years has served as chief examiner for the Life 
Extension Institute of New York. 

Dr. Ledbetter was twice elected president of the well-known body of local profes¬ 
sional men. He is also a member of the Louisiana State Medical Society, and filled the 
olfice as president in the year of 1912. Dr. Ledbetter also holds membership in the 
American Medical Association, the membership of which is composed of some of the most 
famous practitioners in the United States. 

A little more than eight years ago Dr. Ledbetter, at the beginning of the Sanders 
administration, was appointed a member of the State Board of Health from the Parish 
of Orleans. Subsequently, by reason of the invaluable services Dr Ledbetter rendered 
the State in his capacity as a member of its Health Board, he was reappointed and served 
throughout the regime of Luther E. Hall, and Dr. Ledbetter still serves the State as a 
member of the Health Board, having been recently reappointed by Governor Pleasant 

On October 29, 1897, Dr. Ledbetter was married to Miss Annie Seawall of New 
Orleans, and from this union there are five children, as follows: Karl Gretchen Ren ami 
Walter (twins) and Victor Ledbetter. ’ ana 


JOHN DILLON 

Prominent among the younger business men of 
New Orleans is John Dillon, Secretary-Treasurer 
and General Manager of the firm of A. S. Kottwitz 
& Co., Limited, wholesale produce merchants of 
Tchoupitoulas Street, near Poydras. Mr. Dillon 
is a member of the Board of Commissioners of the 
Fire Department of New Orleans, and is the chair¬ 
man of the Committee on Apparatus, Supplies, 
etc. In this capacity he has contributed much to 
the excellence of the Fire Department, and the 
fact that it is noted as being one of the most 
efficient organizations of fire fighters in America 
is due in a great measure to his activities. 
Mr. Dillon is a consistent worker for New Orleans, 
and through his civic endeavors has contributed 
much to the renaissance of its commercial growth 
during the past decade. He is prominent socially 
as well as in business circles, being a member of 
the Southern Yacht Club, the Young Men’s Gym¬ 
nastic Club the New Orleans Press Club, the New 
Orleans Lodge of Elks, the Association of Com¬ 
merce and the Choctaw Club. 



Foster, Milling, Saal & Milling 

Embracing men of exceptional prominence in State and National affairs, the law 
firm of Foster, Milling, Saal & Milling of New Orleans, with a suite of offices in the 
Rooms 915-25 of the Whitney-Central Building, New Orleans, is one of the leading firms ol 
the profession in the South. This firm, or its predecessors, was organized some fifteen 
? eaF ® a &° under the name of Foster, Milling, Godchaux & Sanders, and occupied offices 
hi Prw° d n^haux Building. The senior member of the firm, Hon. Murphy J. Foster, now 
the Port Collector of Customs of New Orleans, was Governor and twice a United 
States Senator from Louisiana, retiring five years ago from the Senate. Hon J Y 
Sanders, another member now retired from the firm, was Governor and Lieutenant 
Goveinoi of Louisiana, and is now the Representative in Congress from the Sixth 

Vi?r^p ian£ f i 1 h Strl< n t ' dudg . e ® mile Godchaux, also retired from the firm, was elected a 
Judge of the Court of Appeal of Louisiana. Senator Foster is Itill activelv 

Znkbn T Wlth ^ ^ • Tbe active head is Judge Robert E. Mil ing orinerly S 
Fianklin, La„ now recognized as the most prominent lawver in Qm.thL T •• 

Judge Milling has attained prominence as an authority unon iirMna« h ™ Louisiana, 
those laws pertaining to the formation of drainage especially 

bonds. He was instrumental in obtaining the missave ld rl^i.n^ , of drainage 
Louisiana which enabled the drainage districts to bformed nmwl legislation m 
impetus to the reclamation of large areas of fertile lanriQ n ’ ■ d gave a substantial 
and yielding large crops. This 'T™ 1 ' 0 " 

Louisiana and other States operating in this Commonwealthf ?♦* th ® land men or 

bringing investments aggregating many millions into the stkte in7 — the means o£ 
in Louisiana drainage bonds, which might never have bpL nncdhf ^spiring confidence 
Judge Milling has been the attorney for thfsS his , b f cking ' 

Louisiana Railway & Navigation Conmanv in ® Fn Paci . Railroad and for the 

services of himself and the firm have been'engaged in the ^ FOmiI ?? nt litigations, and the 
constructive development companies in Louisian He hiTf ° n ° S ,° me of the most 
Legislature in a number of matters whereTo^oun^el be£ ° re the State 

has been the means of stimulating the diversffirntinnefoA i* f ^estimable value, and 
and the planting of corn and potatoes, as well as the extenslo^nf th Sou , tbern Louisiana 
planting, probably more than any public man in the State He ^ " cultlvatlon of rice 
in matters pertaining to questions before the internal n 6 ' He 1S an expert counsellor 
appeared for the shipper? on numerous ocLston? wW Corr }™ evc ? Emission, and has 
the construction of good roads we. e at stake matters £or the Public good and 



One Hundred and Twenty-Tw’o 








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One Hundred and Twenty-Three 


C. Bennette Moore 


SOL WEISS 

Boi n in Union Parish, Louisiana, April 17, 1885 
is one of the leading attorneys of the Crescent 
City. After attending the public schools, Mr. 

Weiss graduated from the Tulane University with 
the degree of A. B. (1905), and from University of 
Virginia, degree of LL. B. (1907), and was admitted 
to practice in 1907. 

DIi. D\ eiss is a DIason and Shriner and member 
of B’nai B'rith, and in the social life of New Or¬ 
leans a member of the Choctaw and Press Clubs; 
member of the Young Men’s Hebrew Association, 

Lyceum Association, Philharmonic Society, Com 
mercial Law League of America, Louisiana Bar 
Association, Jewish Charitable and Educational 
Association, Society for Relief of Jewish Widows 
and Orphans, Touro Infirmary Benevolent Associa¬ 
tion and other charitable organizations. 

Mr. Weiss is held in high esteem by the bench 
and bar of New Orleans and Louisiana, and his 
name is identified with every public movement 
looking towards the upbuilding of the City of New 
Orleans. 


In the leading cities of the world there is always some one or two photographic 
artists who stand head and shoulders above their competitors in the profession in their 
section. This may be seen in looking over the leading magazines, periodicals and 
newspapers and watching the credits given these geniuses of the camera in reproduc¬ 
tions of their art work. In New Orleans, which for skill in photography leads the cities 
of the South, the one big man in this art is C. Bennette Moore, whose studio at 141 
Baronne Street is frequented by the leading business, professional and society personages 
of the Crescent City, and from whose studio came the portraits used in this publication. 
Through years of work he has attained a skill which has placed the stamp of excellence 
upon all of his productions. Dir. Moore is a constant student of the latest photographic 
processes, and during his career has invented several valuable developing solutions and 
processes by which his portraits take on a distinctive merit. Portrait work is the 
specialty of the Bennette Moore Studio, and its surpassing excellence is attested by the 
clientele which is maintained by this photographic artist. For years Dir. Moore has had 
a steady run of portraits for the charming debutantes of New Orleans society, and the 
art work in delineation of these “buds” is of such superior character that throughout the 
social season Mr. Dloore has a rush from this exclusive class, who demand only the best 
and most expensive of his art work. Mr. Moore also excels in his child pictures, which 
are distinctively artistic in pose and drapings, and the arrangement of backgrounds and 
tone values is surpassed by few photographers in the world. The work of Dir. Dloore 
has attracted the attention of the wealthy winter visitors to the city, and in his collection 
of original negatives he has some of the leading personages of the nation. Many of 
these, especially the ladies, have sent time and again to Mr. Dloore for reproductions of 
his plates, which, they say, are far superior to those taken elsewhere. In numerous 
instances ladies and gentlemen have come from a distance to be photographed by Mr. 
Dloore, and this is so much the case among New Orleans men and women of consequence 
that many have Mr. Dloore do all their work and advise their friends to go to him on all 
occasions. 


J. A. CHARBONNET. 

J. Arthur Charbonnet is Assistant Dis¬ 
trict Attorney of New Orleans, and is the 
senior member of the firm of Charbonnet 
& Gauche, of the Citizens’ Bank Building. 


CHARLES E. ERATH. 

Charles E. Erath, manufacturer of mus¬ 
tards and sauces at 1410 Kelerec Stieet, 
is one of the most successful heads of 
local industries. 







W. H. BYRNES, Jr. 

William Henry Byrnes, Jr., formerly State Sen¬ 
ator from the Tenth Ward and one of the leading 
lawyers practicing at the local bar to-day, is the 
son of the late Colonel William Henry Byrnes, for 
many years one of New Orleans’ prominent law 
yers. 

In 1904 Mr. Byrnes graduated with honors from 
the Tulane University in law, and for the next four 
years he studied and practiced in the law office 
of Howe, Fenner, Spencer & Cocke. 

Since 1908 he has been practicing law alone, and 
by close attention to duty he has built up a prac¬ 
tice second to no other young man of his age in 
New Orleans, and is generally known as one of the 
most successful practitioners at the bar. 

In 1915 Mr. Byrnes wrote a pamphlet on the 
Supreme Court of Louisiana, urging the abolish¬ 
ment of the Appeal on the Facts. The Probe Com¬ 
mission, headed by Senator George Westley Smith, 
thought so well of this pamphlet that, in their re¬ 
port to the Legislature, Mr. Byrnes’ pamphlet in its 
entirety was incorporated therein. 



THE CHINESE AS A RACE 

The tourist and visitor to New Orleans will be amazed at the progressiveness and 
business-like air that pervades that portion of the City of New Orleans known as the 
Chinese Quarter. The Chinese colony only numbers a round four hundred in New 
Orleans, but they constitute a substantial portion of those things that should be seen by 
the casual visitor. 

Thrifty and economical, this people of the old-word race, the oldest of the human 
family, have demonstrated their ability to overcome the environments and superstitions 
that have burdened the race for these thousands of years. 

There are but only a few of the coolie or slave class in the colony in New Orleans, 
most of them being business men of acumen and men of affairs, the heads of big business 
enterprises and men of means, and among the latter are several Chinese grocery and tea 
stores, art stores, restaurant keepers and manufacturers. 

One of the large industries is that of making and marketing dried shrimp and fish. 
There are three firms in this industry alone, one firm being known as the Fou Loy & Co., 
while another by Fung Lee. These three concerns sell and dispose of large quantities of 
dried shrimp and fish and ship all over the country. The Fou Loy Company gives 
employment to a large number of people, among them being native Frenchmen, Spaniards, 
Italians and Mexicans. The head of this business is Mr. Chinn Bing, an American-born 
Chinaman, who is a fluent linguist and man of affairs, and has a most interesting family 
of four children. 

One of the commendable and interesting racial characteristics of all sons of the 
Flowery Kingdom is to pay his debts. Bankruptcy to them is an unknown quantity, and 
on their New Year’s Day the Chinaman who does not have a clean slate so far as his 
creditors are concerned will have to answer to his ancestors several generations removed. 

The people make for the very highest type of citizenship to be found in the alien 
class in the United States. They are frugal and debt-paying, hardwork and conscientious, 
public spirited in charity and charitable work at all times. Among a number of the more 
prominent Chinese in New Orleans who are regarded as leaders are: On Yick, Kwong 
Song, Nam Hing, Wah Kee, Sun Wah Lung, Quong Wah Chong, John Fong, Shen Ying 
Lung, Quong Chung Lung, Jung Sing Long, Quo Chong, Ah Sing, Lee Yuk, Louie Lake, 
Chin Chapo, Jung Yip, Gee Yu Juk, Lee Loy Poo, Jue On, Chin Kia Tang, Henry Lewis, 
Fung Lee and Fung Jung. 


THE METAIRIE CEMETERY 

When a visitor conies to New Orleans one of the sights of the city winch 
urged not to miss is the beautiful Metairie Cemetery. This institution is p fa * tu ^ e “ * tairie 
of the spots of New Orleans naturally endowed with aesthetic virtues, K Southern 
Ridge at the junction of two of the most attractive automobiie driveways in the Sout^^ 
States. The cemetery is splendidly kept, the management .priding , , tl 

and symmetry of its roadways, walks and the genera layout of the p g r ° und ® and the 
tombs and burial places which beautify it are representatives of the leading tamilieh o 
New Orleans and Louisiana. The monuments are all of a highly artistic type, j’ 
mausoleums erected by some of the most wealthy families of New O P 

expenditure of thousands of dollars. 

A prominent feature in the beauty of the cemetery is the number of tombs of 
Confederate Veterans and other fraternal and social organizations of New Oi leans, i e 



handsomest of the Confederate tombs is the monument of General Albert Sydney 
Johnstone erected by the Association of the Army of Tennessee, which is at the entrance 
of the cemetery. This tomb is the last resting place of some of the most prominent 
members of that organization, valiant soldiers of the Civil War and men who in latter 
days had given valued service to the State and Nation in many ways. Another monument 
of special beauty at the entrance is that of the Moriarity family, representing the figures 
of Faith, Hope and Charity. The tomb of Dr. Benjamin Palmer, a famous Presbyterian 
divine, is also one of special beauty and often visited by tourists to New Orleans. 

The Metairie Cemetery is designed as a resting place for the poor as well as the 
rich, and it has been the aim of the management to keep the prices of burial lots as low 
as possible, consistent with the numerous improvements necessary to maintain the 
beauty of the cemetery. Many lots may be had at a cost of $50, and within the past few 
years a large annex has been opened in which there are numbers of the cheaper lots, all 
well kept and capable of much adornment. 

Formerly the grounds were the site of the famous Metairie Jockey Club, where 
some of the most celebrated sporting events of the ante-bellum days were held, and where 
the wealth and beauty of all the Southern plantations foregathered. After the decline of 
the Jockey Club it was turned into the cemetery, and for more than a generation it has 
been the God’s Acre of the leading families of New Orleans. The offices of the Metairie 
Cemetery Company are in the Hennen Building and are in charge of S. H. Bell, Secretary 
of the company. 


One Hundred and Twenty-Four 











Quelling- 


_ Ci ty Park 


si isi'izi' 

isi I5S m in i»4 

sife-K' 


Lee Monument 


Avenue of oak 
Adddbqm Park 


One Hundred and Twenty-Five 




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GUATEMALA’S REMARKABLE PROGRESS 


Rehabilitation of Guatemala will be the 
monument of Licenciado Don Manuel Es¬ 
trada Cabrera, President of the Republic 
of Guatemala. More than seventeen 
years of his life have been devoted to this 
work for his brother Guatemaltecos, for 
it is the proudest boast of the lawyer- 
President that he has been able to per¬ 
form a duty which has meant the enlight¬ 
enment and uplifting of the common peo¬ 
ple of his country. Since February 8th, 
1898, Don Manuel has been the Chief Ex¬ 
ecutive of Guatemala, he having been 
called to administer the affairs of his 
country by the assassination of General 
Jose Maria Reina Barrios. At that time 
Licenciado Estrada Cabrera, though still 
a young man, had attained a reputation 
among his people by his ability as a law¬ 
yer, being rated as the most prominent 
man in that profession in Guatemala. 

During his successive administrations 
Licenciado Estrada Cabrera has devoted 
the major portion of his time to the de¬ 
velopment of the magnificent resources 
of Guatemala. He was imbued with a 
realization of the tremendous wealth of 
his country; of the vast deposits of unde¬ 
veloped mineral riches; by the fields of 
petroleum and natural gas yet to be dis¬ 
covered; in the wonderful estates of 
coffee, of chocolate, indigo, bananas and 
coconuts; in the boundless forest of 
mahogany, chicle-zapote, Spanish cedar 
and other precious woods and dye-woods 
PRESIDENT MANNUEL ESTRADA CABRERA an( j the great undeveloped possibilities 

for wealth in the agricultural lands of the 
nation Don Manuel set about to develop these resources by acquainting the world with what 
Guatemala has to offer to the investor and developer and by broadening the international re¬ 
lations of the republic. Schools were established throughout the land and Indian boys were 
taken as wards of the nation to be educated in business and professional careers in France, in 
Germany and in the United States. 

By popular election, in October of 1898, President Cabrera was continued in office, and he 
then nroceeded to carry still further the many beneficial works he had inaugurated in the few 
months he had served the people of his country as Chief Executive. During this period he pro¬ 
mulgated a decree that established first-class legations in Colombia and Chile; signed a treaty 
of commerce with Chile; treaty concerning copyrights with Spain; trademark treaty with Bel¬ 
gium- sent delegates to the judicial congress in Salvador, an assemblage in which these dele¬ 
gates’took prominent parts and from which much good resulted to the republic participating; 
aided in securing the treatv of peace, friendship and compulsory arbitration, which was signed 
£^ delegates' 1 /rom Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Salvador on November 2 1903. He 
brought Guatemala into the parcel post convention between the nations of the New World and 
has taken a personal interest in all Guatemalan exhibits in foreign fairs and expositions, so that 
K nation has stood high in all these affairs. President Cabrera sent delegates to the various 
Red Cross and other humanitarian conventions and peace congresses, until the name of Guate¬ 
mala became synonymous with peace and high humanitarian aspirations. , 

4t the same time President Cabrera worked unceasingly to widen the relations of friend¬ 
ship and commerce with all the republics of the New World. Delegates from Guatemala took 
prominent parts in the meeting of the Third Pan-American conference in Brazi in July, 1906 
and in tEe same year agreements for the furtherance of measures for preserving the public 


health were made with the United States, Cuba, Santo Domingo, Mexico, Costa Rica and Nica¬ 
ragua- , x . ttli „ remarkable man, aside from the organi- 

But, undoubtedly, the greatest works ot t “ J aJong financia i an d educational lines, 

zation and maintenance of stable government, finances were in bad condition. 

At the time he assumed the Presidency of ^"Satu’ral resources, but they were practically 
Guatemala, then as now, was enormously rich Qf the curren cy which had been estab- 

undeveloped, sources of income were small and the 

lished by preceding rulers was not sound Manuel Estrada Cabrera attacked this 

With his customary promptness and fo ^ e f ’ mind and bo dy. By the application of 
most serious problem with all the powers of a \igo 
methods which he had observed were suc¬ 
cessful in older nations, and also by the free 
use of original ideas of his own. President 
Cabrera gradually put his country on a 
sound financial footing, and has announced 
that within a few months he will place it on 
a gold basis. This, Central American finan¬ 
ciers believe, will add a great deal to the 
progress of Guatemala in industry and pros¬ 
perity. 

In connection with the general financial 
problem, especial attention was paid to 
banking, the laws on this subject having 
been revised as occasion demanded and 
brought down to date each year. Statutes 
designed to eliminate fraud in bankruptcy 
proceedings and similar causes have been 
placed on the books and are rigidly enforced. 

Guatemala’s credit has been brought to 
the highest possible mark by the work of 
this versatile and tireless Executive. W ith 
the placing of Guatemala’s finances on a gold 
basis, it is expected that even more solidity 
and solidarity will be given to her financial 
standing among the nations of the world. 

Despite the enormous timber and mineral 
resources of Guatemala, the government 
realizes that the main basis of prosperity 
must ever be agriculture, and to that end 
has devoted much time and large sums of 
money to the promotion of farming in all its 
branches. 

So rapidly has this industry grown that 
in 1914—the last available figures — enor¬ 
mous crops were produced through the co 
operation of the government with tillers of 
the soil. In that year 918.522 quintals of 
coffee were raised; 7.933,497 bunches of 
bananas, 4.611,292 quintals of corn, 184.426 
quintals of beans. 546.532 of wheat, 237.532 
of rice. 308,733 of potatoes, 73,404 of other 
products and 100,000 of brown sugar for ex¬ 
portation, not considering what the cane 
rendered for interior consumers in white 
sugar—first and second class — brown sugar 
and svrups. The greater part of articles for 
subsistence gave a very favorable in¬ 
crease on quantities produced the 

previous year, to which reason is due 


Monument to the Memory of Garcia Granados 


One Hundred and Twenty-Six 













that their prices did not go up, as wished by specula 
tors who, during the first days of the European conflict 
managed to introduce panic, in order to monopolize the 
products and sell them dear, which proceeding was defeated 
by the I resident s immediate bringing, from the exterior 
flour, corn, rice and potatoes to be sold at the lowest prices 
under the vigilance of the authorities. 

The locust plague which coming from Mexico, invaded 
some of the western, southern and eastern departments— 
could not be destroyed as rapidly as was wished owing to 
immense numbers, but the measures taken by the govern¬ 
ment and well followed by the lower authorities, have grad¬ 
ually overcome the plague. 

Cne of the best results of the agricultural campaign waged 
under direction of President Cabrera was the exhibit of that 
branch of the republic’s resources at the San Francisco Ex¬ 
position. First prize, the principal award made by the grand 


jury, went to El Pacayal coffee, a practical declaration that 
Guatemala coffee is the best in the world. 

As a result of this award, a subscription of several thousand 
dollars was raised for the celebration of the “Great Day of 
Guatemala,” which was celebrated with extraordinary fes¬ 
tivities. 

To aid agriculture, mining and timber industries, as well 
as to promote transportation facilities, more than 500 miles 
of railroads have been built in the republic, and a new fine, 
the Eastern Railroad, to the Pacific, is in process of construc¬ 
tion. This line will be 120 miles long, crossing the Depart¬ 
ment of Santa Rosa. 

\\ ork also is being done on the line that will unite the 
western metropolis with the northern, western and centra} 
railroads, and it is planned to construct branches that will 
cross new and fertile zones conecting important sections, 
such as the one from Zacapa to the frontier with El Salva- 

vador, the one 
from Guate¬ 
mala to Barbe- 
repa and Es- 
clavos and that 
from Quezalte- 
nango to Hue- 
huetenango, for 
which all nec¬ 


essary surveys 
have been 
made. 


TEMPLE OF MINERVA. 


Petroleum exists in quantities, and much interest has risen in that industry, 
its existence being confirmed by twenty claims of petroleum wells that are being 
carried through in the Departments of San Marcos, Alta Verapaz and Quezalte- 
nango. 


also is being 
given to min¬ 
ing with good 
results. The 
rich gold beds, 
“Las Quebra- 
das,” in the De- 


fa een produc- Commemoration of the Interoceanic Railroad of Guatemala. 

ing increasing¬ 
ly, and along the Grande River, and its affluent, the Platanos, were inaugurated in 
1913, important works for gold washing, which render rich results. In the De¬ 
partments of Santa Roca, Guatemala and Shiquimula rich mines are being ex¬ 
ploited, and Alotepeque a syndicate carries on important work in which big sums 
of money have been invested. The Guatemala Mining Company continues the de¬ 
velopment of its properties. In the marble quarries, which in this country can be 
found very fine and as pure and white as that of Carrara, great works have been 
started. There are 129 mines registered. 



One Hundred and Twenty-Seven 





































Present Conditions in Mexico 


The civil war which for the last six years has been drenching with blood the fields 
of Mexico has brought before the public eye the wonderful natural resources of that 
country, its admirable economic capabilities and its agricultural and industrial vitality. 

Notwithstanding the fact that the 
horrors of war have been felt from 


one extreme to the other of the na 


tional territory, and notwithstand¬ 
ing the fact that the greater part of 
its public and private wealth has 
been destroyed, its potentiality is so 
great that, even at this present mo¬ 
ment, we see rising everywhere 
from the ashes, springing from the 
ruins new enterprises, new fields of 
endeavor, the realization of the 
ideals of the revolution, which were 
thought to have been killed forever. 

The armed strife is reaching its 
end, and all good men are making 
ready to begin the reconstruction, 
to return to abandoned fields or to 
the workshop, with new vigor and 
greater faith for the future. 

The Constitutionalist revolution 


has not only reconquered the public 
liberties which were lost, it has 
also revealed new and brighter hori¬ 
zons to national activities and laid 
the foundations for new avenues to 
public effort. It is distinguished by 
its cherished object — the economic 
betterment of the individual and so¬ 
cial equality before the law. The 
revolutionary cause is the cause of 
the people, without privileges, with¬ 
out distinctions. 

Throughout the republic, schools 
and colleges are being opened. The 
new regime is inspired in the high 
ideal of the uplifting of the national 
character through education, to de¬ 
velop apt and conscientious men, in 
whose hands the future of the coun¬ 
try will be placed. 

The false reports which are being circulated by the enemies of the revolution and 
published by the yellow press of this country have little if any effect upon the mind of 
this enlightened and justice-loving people. On the contrary, they only serve to show 
that our enemies are playing their last cards. 

The eloquence of facts and figures which show our commercial activities, notwith¬ 
standing the revolution, clearly come to show the stability of the government and the 
confidence shown it by the people. 

According to official data contained in this Consular Office, the value of goods 
exported from this port to Mexican ports during the year ending December 31st, 1916, 
amounted to $7,151,510.40 American gold, September of 1916 alone exceeding $1,375,000.00. 


G. M. SEGUIN, 

Former Mexican Consul at New Orleans, 
promoted to this port from Eagle Pass, 
Texas, where he served his government 
for the past three years. 


LEON DE WAELE, 
Consul General of Belguim. 


Santiago Chaves 

Santiago Chaves is a graduate of the 
National University of San Salvador, re¬ 
ceiving the degree of LL. B., and subse¬ 
quently taking a course in the law depart¬ 
ment of that institute and graduating 
with honors. He was appointed Consul 
to the United States July 27, 1916, and is 
peculiarly fitted for the duties of that 
office. 

In 1900-1901 he was chosen by the Na¬ 
tional Congress as Magistrate of the Su¬ 
preme Court of Appeals in Comayagua, 
and in 1903 declined to accept the respon¬ 
sibilities incident to the office of Criminal 
Supreme Court of Appeals of Tegucigalpa 
and was later named Judge of Letters in 
the Department of Cortez, in which office 
he remained for four years, gaining great 
renown for his strict attention to duties 
and earning many friends in the dis¬ 
charge of his official duties. 

He is an able diplomat, an affable gen 
tleman and man of affairs, and well 
equipped for the office which his country 
has conferred upon him. One of the pe¬ 
culiar characteristics of Consul Chaves 
is his independence of character, which 
enables him to do justice to all parties 
at all times. 


HON. LOUIS DA COSTA CARVALHO, 

Consul from Portugal to the United States, 
with offices in the Metropolitan Bank 
Building, New Orleans, La., was born at 
Braga, Portugal, February 15, 1882. 


LOUIS ALEJANDRO CARO, 

Consul of Colombia, is a son of ex-Presi- 
dent Caro of Colombia. Mr. Caro was 
Director of Public Instruction and Secre¬ 
tary of the Senate of Colombia. 


One Hundred and Twenty-Eight 







(ttatlfnUr Justitutumi; 










L OYOLA U NIV E R SIT Y 


Ranking among the best universities of the South for scholarly attainment is the 
Loyola University, the main building of which was recently completed by the Jesuit 
Fathers. The erection of the University buildings is still in progress, and it will require 
many months to complete them according to the elaborate plans laid out by the noble 
order which has the supervision of the work. The first building completed, Marquette 
Hall, faces stately St. Charles Avenue, opposite Audubon Park, and is the setting for a 
magnificent quadrangle designed after the Tudor Gothic style of architecture. A hand- 
church 


some church adjacent to Marquette 
Hall is in process of construction, as 
are other buildings in the quadrangle, 
and when the work is completed it is 
said that it will mean an investment 
in grounds and buildings of more than 
one million dollars. The Tudor Gothic 
architecture is admirably adapted to 
educational buildings, and is particu¬ 
larly effective in the Loyola buildings. 

In fact, they are noteworthy as being 
among the few buildings of the South 
of that design and are easily the hand 
somest school buildings in New Or¬ 
leans. They are fireproof in construc¬ 
tion and modernly equipped through¬ 
out, so that, when finished, Loyola 
University will be one of the most in¬ 
teresting sights of New Orleans, as 
well as among the most substantial 
universities of the South. 

The Catholic school property in the 
diocese of New Orleans has an esti¬ 
mated value of close to $5,000,00. and 
the Loy'ola University, with its mag¬ 
nificent campus, its stately buildings 
and the large property' embraced in its 
site for future enlargement of the in¬ 
stitution. will unquestionably be one 
of the most valuable holdings of the 
church in the Southern States. In¬ 
cluded in the university' are colleges 
of medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, law', 
the sciences, classics and arts, pre and 
post graduate medicine and wireless 
telegraphy'. More than 120 of the most 
erudite men of this section are listed 
among its faculty, and its medical and 
dental schools, though comparatively 
young, are already making rapid strdes 
and attracting Catholics and non-Cath- 
olics from all parts of the nation, as 

well as from various Central and Southern American countries and the West Indies. 

Leading practioners of medicine and dentistry in New Orleans are at the head of 
the faculties of the dental and medical departments, and though these two colleges are 
less than five years old, there are numbers of students enrolled and everything points to 
an enrollment of more than one hundred in each department during the coming term, 
which opens in September. Last year there were more than two hundred students en¬ 
rolled in all the branches of the University, but the institution was hardly ready to do its 
full dutv being equipped to handle only a minimum number of students in the various 
departments. Nevertheless all the schools got a flourishing start, and, from the number 
of letters of inquiry being received from all parts of the South and Latin America as 
well, it is certain already that the schools in every department will be well filled. The 


nwned for their erudition, and among 
Jesuit Kuthers throughout the worldthe highest professional reputation 
the faculty are many eminent ed sciences and classics. . 

in law medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and ^ e f c ^^ Tend Fat her A. E. Otis, a scientist 
The President of Loyola nnive ^ s '^ among the faculty of the College of Sciences 
and litterateur of international note while** n whom there are few greater authorities 
mid Arts is the Reverend Father Biever in the eye, nose and throat 

on entomology. Doctor Homer Dupuy, a note 1^ Qf th@ me dical department 

while Dr. Joseph Danna is a professoi 
and the secretary of the post-graduate 
medical school. This school is rapidly 
gaining a most enviable reputation, 
and the post-graduate work in connec¬ 
tion with the free clinics at the Char¬ 
ity Hospital, form a combination for 
the advancement of medical science 
which no practitioner can resist. In 
fact it offers advantages comparing 
favorably in value with the clinical 
training of the best New York post 
graduate colleges. The equipment of 
Loyola University has gained a repu¬ 
tation among educators throughout the 
country The astronomical observa¬ 
tory is very fine, and the seismograph, 
or earthquake detector, has performed 
some wonderful feats in locating seis¬ 
mic disturbances. Often its recorda¬ 
tions are so perfect that the United 
States Departments at Washington 
rely upon the delicate machine to find 
various disturbances of the earth’s 
crusts, which, sometimes, Washington 
observers do not catch. In the law de¬ 
partment, also, there are men of great 
endowments. Among the faculty is 
former Chief Justice Breaux of the 
Louisiana Supreme Court, and some of 
the leading jurists of the State are 
professors. The wireless department 
has been of great assistance in train¬ 
ing men for the government service, 
and numbers of students will be util¬ 
ized in Uncle Sam’s preparations for 
war. 

The following courses are offered at 
Loyola University: Collegiate-Classi¬ 
cal — A four-year course leading to the 
Degrees A. B. and A. M. This course 
offers the best foundation for a busi 
ness or professional career. Collegiate-Scientific — A four-year course leading to 
the Degree B. S. A practical course for the professional student. Law — A 
three-year course leading to the Degree LL. B. Entire field of law covered, preparing 
the student for practice not only in Louisiana, but also in common law States. Dental— 
A three-year course leading to the Degree D. D. S. Thoroughly modern and practical; 
excellent clinic facilities. Pharmacy—(a) A two-year course leading to the Degree Ph. G.; 
(b) A three-year course leading to the Degree Ph. C. (pharmaceutical chemist) Pre- 
Medical—A one-year course in Biology, Bacteriology, Botany, Physics, Chemistry, English 
and Modern Languages, for prospective medical students. Post-Graduate Medical — 
General and special courses in every branch of medicine and surgery for graduate physi- 
sicians. Courses may be begun at any time. Wireless Telegraphy—A one-year course 
fitting students for position as practical operator. 


One Hundred and Thirty 






















Foremost among the Catholic colleen *1 
hy the Congregation of the Holy Cross, known as koto n institution founded 

(ollege was hrst opened in 1879, under the name if?! College. The Holy Cross 
chartered under an act of the General Assrmhi! f bt .' lsidore ’s College, and was 
attained a most enviable reputation among the b <SlleL LOm in June - 1890. it has 
Cnited States for thoroughness of education an dfor3, ° ther boys ’ ^'hools of the 
and letters won by its students and graduates and haV^t de f r ® e of P rofl ciency in arts 
of the Southern States, and from the Hisnano attracted students from all parts 

growth of the Holy Cross Col- Hispano-Amencan States as well, m tact the 

lege has been steady since its 
foundation, and the main 
building is now 200 feet long, 

70 feet in width and three 
stories high. It contains 
study halls, classrooms, recre¬ 
ation rooms, dormitories, the 
chapel, the refectory and a 
handsome library, and is the 
center of a group of buildings 
which make up the College. 

The institution is modern 
and all the buildings are well 
ventilated and constructed 
with a view to obtaining the 
maximum of comfort, safety 
and good health for the stu¬ 
dents and faculty. Every 
comfort is afforded the stu¬ 
dents, the building being 
heated with steam and lit 
with electricity, thus injur¬ 
ing pleasant surroundings 
during the cooler months of 
the year. Fire escapes and 
automatic sprinkler systems 
afford ample security in case 
of fire, and a well-equipped fire 
department is within easy 
reach of all the buildings. Spe 
cial attention is given to the 
conservation of the health, as 
well as the mental and spirit¬ 
ual welfare of the students. 

The aim of the institution is to 
give its pupils a thorough edu¬ 
cation along practical lines, 
calculated to make good citi¬ 
zens of all its graduates. The 
curriculum comprises the preparatory, commercial and high school courses, supplemented 
when desirable by special courses in modern languages, music, drawing, shorthand and 
typewriting, and the program of studies has been carefully graded, all textbooks being 
by authors of acknowledged merit. The right molding of character and the actual 
development of the mental and moral faculties need constant and vigilant care, and the 
Congregation of the Holy Cross has made this noble task their lifework. 

The Holy Cross College is in charge of a Board of Directors, of which Brother 
Engelbert, C. S. C., is President; Rev. P. Dalton, C. S. C., Vice President; Rev. John 
O’Rourke, C. S. C., Treasurer; Brother Dominic, C. S. C., Steward, and Brother Florentius, 

C. S. C., is Secretary. All of the officers and faculty are men of careful and exacting 
training and intellectually endowed and very earnest. Particular attention is paid to the 
development of the physical manhood of the students by healthful and pleasant athletic 


holy cross college 




■ 








m 




sports and games. The gymnasium building is specially constructed with this aim and 
provided with the most carefully selected apparatus of the latest and most approved 
designs. A physical instructor is in attendance, and the students are drilled with special 
regard to the correction of physical defects and the right development of muscles and 
strength without fear of overdoing their exercises. The playgrounds and campus are 
spacious and beautifully arranged, and the baseball, basket ball and indoor baseball, 
football and other teams of the colleges have been listed among the best in the South 
and have won numerous prizes in athletic and other contests in New Orleans and other 

cities. Many athletic tourna¬ 
ments have been held on these 
grounds, and thousands have 
attended them. 

In addition the Holy Cross 
College has its band, its or¬ 
chestra, its Choral Union So¬ 
ciety, its Literary Society, its 
senior and junior baseball and 
football, indoor baseball and 
basket ball teams, its Alumni 
Association, a St. Aloysius So 
ciety and a junior literary so¬ 
ciety. To further the religious 
life of the Holy Cross College, 
there are several church so¬ 
cieties, among them being the 
Society of the Guardian An¬ 
gels of the Sanctuary, the ob¬ 
ject of which is to add beauty 
and solemnity to Divine wor¬ 
ship by the observance of 
liturgic rites; to foster in the 
hearts of the young students 
a love for the service of the 
altar and to afford to Cath¬ 
olic students distinguished by 
good conduct the honor of 
serving in the sanctuary. The 
League of the Sacred Heart, 
of which the Rev. John Thill- 
man, C. S. C., is the spiritual 
director, is another religious 
organization. Degrees are con¬ 
ferred for Bachelor of Arts 
and the Master of Accounts, 
and certificates are given for 
the completion of the high 
school course. Gold and sil- 
rr.i it -i ,, ver medals are also given 

The college is beautifully situated, commanding a view of the Mississippi River, and is 

in the Ninth V ard of New Orleans, at the corner of Dauphine and Reynes Streets. 
Although removed from the distraction and noise of the city, it is easy of access from 
all parts of New Orleans and its suburbs, and the Dauphine and Levee and Barracks 
eiectric cars pass through the grounds. Information as to studies and tuition will be 
readily furnished by addressing the President, Holy Cross College, New Orleans La. 
Non-Catholic students are received with the same rights and privileges of Catholic 
students, and no attempt is made to interfere with their religious convictions. Christian 
doctrine is taught daily, and children of Catholic parents are carefully instructed in the 
principles of the holy religion. Every student residing at the college is required to 
attend the exercises of public worship in the college chapel on Sundays and holy davs 


On« Hundred and Thirty-One 






















MOUNT CARMEL ACADEMY 

Pioneers of educational work in the South, the good Sisters of Our Lady of Mount 
Carmel established the Mount Carmel Academy at St. Claude and Governor Nicholls 
Streets, in New Orleans, in March, 1837. This excellent institution still occupies the 
original building of the Sisters of the Order, so substantially erected eighty years ago 
that it was successfully modernized and made splendidly comfortable. The Sisters of 
Our Lady of Mount Carmel operate fourteen other schools throughout Louisiana, the 
second oldest of which is the Convent of Mount Carmel at Lafayette, which was estab¬ 
lished in September, 1846. The Sisters who established the first Convent of Mount 
Carmel Academy left the mother house in Havre, France, in 1833, and, after a perilous 
journey in a sailing vessel, reached New Orleans in 52 days. They went to work with 
great energy, and in less than four years had raised sufficient funds to commence the 
erection of their building. Their first academy met with excellent success, and the 
demand was so great for more schools that other Sisters of the Order were urged to come 
from France to join in establishing other academies. The New Orleans Academy is the 
mother house for Louisiana of the Order, and the academy enjoys a large patronage from 
Catholic and non-Catholic families of New Orleans and from countries of Latin America 
as well. It has attained a most enviable reputation for thoroughness of curriculum and 
general excellence of its work, and numbers among its graduates many of the most 
substantial families of New Orleans. In fact, so satisfactory has been the results 
attained that children, grandchildren and even great-grandchildren of the original students 
have attended the noble old academy in their successive generations. The original 
building has been brought up to date and other buildings added, so that the academy now 
occupies an entire city block in one of the most pleasant parts of New Orleans. Special 
attention is paid to the moral and physical well-being of the students, and daily calis¬ 
thenics are given them to keep them in good condition. The good Sisters themselves 
take personal supervision of the girls and see to it that they are free from sickness and 
get exceptional advantages of training in music, needlework and useful arts. 

The buildings of the Mount Carmel Academy in Lafayette are delightfully situated 
in one of the most healthful sections of Southern Louisiana, and are modernized and 
safe in every respect. All the buildings are equipped with the latest improvements, and 
comfort for the students is one of the prerequisites to its success. The grounds are 
spacious and beautiful, with large shade trees and ornamental shrubs, so that the insti¬ 
tution has the appearance of an old plantation home of ante-bellum elegance. The 
academy offers superior advantages to parents desirous of giving their children a solid 
and refined education, and particular attention is given to the health and comfort of 
students. Christian doctrine is one of the prescribed studies, as it is held that complete 
and harmonious development is impossible without attention to religion and morality, 
and special attention is given to religious studies. The course of study includes English, 
French and Latin, and the grades range from primary to those preparatory to the high 
schools. There are also courses of stenography, typewriting and commercial work, and 
the musical department is of a recognized standard of excellence. The study of the 
voice, violin, piano, harmony and theory may be taken up either as a profession or as an 
accomplishment, and diplomas attained are regarded as a recognition of true musical 
worth on account of the excellent reputation of the academy training throughout the. 
South. The fifth year of the academic department is designed as the finishing year, and 
is the only course for which the academic medal and diploma are given. The Mount 
Carmel Academy at Lafayette has been patronized by Catholics and non-Catholics of 
Southern Louisiana and Texas for several generations, and thousands of students have 
been fitted for the duties of womanhood within its classic portals. Grand daughters and 
great-granddaughters of its original students are being trained by the good Sisters as 
they blossom into womanhood, and with the passage of years the curriculum is changed 
to meet the progress of educational science, the Sisters keeping abreast of its strides 
with remarkable accuracy. The high school course is one of the later additions to the 
academy, and embraces a practical knowledge of the classics, modern literature, mathe¬ 
matics and science, as well as music and art. Its course is of four years’ duration, and 
on its completion the girl student is fitted amply to adorn society or join in the best of 
j ier c 1 21 s s. 

The fourteen other schools under the supervision of the Sisters of Our Lady of 
Mount Carmel are in various parishes of Southern Louisiana, and are for boys and girls. 
All maintain a high standard of excellence in their various lines of endeavor, and have 
been the means of spreading knowledge at a minimum cost through thousands of families. 


Rev. Father J. B. Brim 

Among the clergy of the Catholic '* lth 0 "Ih/nameVt the Reverend Father 
the community, irrespective of race, *. New Orleans, stands pre-eminent. Father 

John B. Prim, rector of Holy Trinity Parish in 
Prim has been In charge of the work at Holy 
Trinity Church, in St. Ferdinand Street sine 
1907 when Father A. Bickelmeyer, the beloved 
rector, was gathered unto his fathers and pn 
to that time had been the assistant rector and the 
active head of the parish since the year 1899. 

This, by the way, was the year the divine came to 
New Orleans. The rector is the brother of Path 
Francis Prim, in charge of the Mate 
Parish, in Carrollton, and Ins parish extends from 
Canal Street to the Barracks. 

In addition Father Prim has added a ne w fi eht. 

Gentilly and Milneburg, which embiaces all tl 
territory of Orleans Parish from Lake Pontchar- 
train to the Rigolets. Since 1909 Father Prim has 
added several buildings to his church, more than 
doubling its capacity, for the attendance at the 
parish school, and sufficient capital has been 
raised to give all needy children of the locality 
free education. Father Prim has “Work” for his 
hobby, but in his spare time he finds hours to 
enjoy his great musical gifts, as he is a talented 
performer on the organ, violin and piano. He was 
born in Germany of noble parentage and finished 
his education in the American College at Rome- 
after attending the American School at Louvain, . 

Belgium, for some years. Among his other charges Father Prim has the supervision of 
the noted shrine of St. Roch, in the lower section of the Third District, in St. Roch 
Avenue. This was built after the yellow fever scourge of 1878. 


One Hundred and Thirty-Two 











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anlt Acatomtj 


Iraulitt? (Hollei 


2frut ©rlrrntH, SoitiBiatta 


Ursuline College 


and Academy 


The Ursuline Academy, an Institution fnr fn u--! 
enjoys the distinction of being the first Acadeim ^d 1 . 1 f. h ® r e,lucation of young ladies, 
was founded in 1727. under the auspices of I ou s °® ta * 1 ? 8hed , i “ the United States. It 
the Ursuline Ladies. On February 22 1727 Madam ’cU"* 8 ° f f- rance ’ aiul intrusted to 
fessed Ursuline, left France with eight professed com,aK “ o^Sce'"nj To 


postulants. After a tedious voyage, the little band reached New Orleans on the morn¬ 
ing of August 7, 1727. They were warmly welcomed by Governor Perier, who had suc¬ 
ceeded Bienville as Governor of Louisiana. It was, however, Governor Bienville who 
had requested the Ursulines to come to Louisiana. As he was on a visit to France at 
the time of the Nuns’ arrival, his beautiful home in the city that he had founded was 

offered the Ursulines for their temporary 
abode. Their monastery being completed 
in 1734, they took possession of it and oc¬ 
cupied this venerable building for ninety 
years. On the Nuns’ departure from this 
Monastery, the buildings were used, up to 
a recent date, as the Residence of the 
Bishops and Archbishops of New Orleans. 
This antique building (the oldest in Lou¬ 
isiana) is now known as the Old Arch¬ 
bishopric, 1114 Chartres Street. 


In 1824 they moved to the lower limits 
of the city, where they continued their 
glorious work up to the year 1912, when 
the Orleans Levee Board expropriated the 
buildings and grounds of their historic 
old Convent on the banks of the Missis¬ 
sippi. This necessitated the erection of 
a new building on State Avenue, to which 
the Ursulines moved on September 7, 
1912. 


The new site is a large tract, more 
than twelve acres in extent, ideally lo¬ 
cated in the Garden District of the city, 
in State Avenue. 


The location makes it easily accessi¬ 
ble. Two lines of electric cars pass near 
the Academy and establish direct com¬ 
munication with all parts of New Orleans. 
The Carondelet and South Claiborne lines 
are most convenient. 


The New and Greater Ursuline Con¬ 
vent is one of the most imposing build¬ 
ings in the United States. 


The main building is a magnificent 
three-story building, with a frontage of 
600 feet on State Avenue. The refec¬ 
tories and the kitchen are separated from 
the Academy and the living rooms, which 
are in the main building. The buildings 
form a quadrangle and enclose a beauti¬ 
ful courtyard that is laid off in lawns and 
flower beds. 


The buildings are fireproof and are 
thoroughly equipped with the best of 
modern improvements. They are heated 
by steam and cleaned by vacuum. The 
light and ventilation leave nothing to be 
desired. The Laboratories, Libraries. 
Museums, Art Studio and Music Rooms 


(Continued on Page 138) 


One Hundred and Thirty-Three 







































































Rev. F. Chas. Brockmeier 

Rev. F. Chas. Brockmeier was appointed by the 
Most Reverend P. L. Chapelle, Pastor of St. Francis 
of Assisi Parish, June 1st, 1S99. The church, 
school and presbytery are located on State, Patton 
and Constance Streets, respectively. The new St 
Francis of Assisi Parochial School, costing $21,000. 
was built under the Martin Behrman Administra¬ 
tion, and dedicated March 29, 1908, in the presence 
of city and State officials, by the Most Rev. Arch¬ 
bishop James H. Blenk. As soon as peace has been 
restored to the world the new St. Francis of Assisi 
Church, costing from $50,000 to $60,000, will be 
completed. The congregation has no debts. The 
parochial school has over 500 pupils. 



ST 


FRANCIS OF ASSISI PAROCHIAL SCHOOL. 


Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Parish 

This grand mansion, the old £ to*the Catholic*ArohdiocSi^o? hfe^Orleans by 
with its spacious grounds, was donated to t Blanc widow of the late James D. 

M ^ s S &^: g ow're 8 “ e o. donation with these 

' rU,y in pursuance o, tlropSy 

Mrs. Marie Fannie Labatut, widow of. .. res ide’nce should become the site of a 

hereinafter described, for many years he^fan 1 u neighborhood of Bayou 

parish church, for the purpose of= ?™ v a ld “« “and in consideration of the faith 

MifKiS fSSoSl™ Church.-the ardent desire she has tor the 



, her native place, and her desire to 

, . . falth ln the City of New Orleans her^ 0rleans tor the welfare of 
nmna.era.tion of thdt fdltii faith in the Cl y 

further extend the influence o g M established the parish and 

its people,” etc. Archbishop James H. Bleui . • ’ 0cto her 19, 1907. The late 

The lamented ^ArcWi^i^P ( p Vincent tts^astc^, roomg __ the very^room from 

, , The parish, with the various societies that 

bef0r6 People and pastor have worked ««< • 
g0 to make a Cathohc P , g under the ’ 
ganized. The bcn°o . teac hers, the 

lK,r d s r o t C 3« 0n jo 0 ,ep e “has over three hun- 
dred children in attenda " ce gt are work- 

• T P d“to raise r u.e "ids necessary to 
ing haid to laise u humble chapel 

replace the present a y w ju , a 

xhldToft^ 

Tor! our He^veMy"Father anTbeg His 
protection for themselves and country. 




FORMERLY 


URSULINE CONVENT AND ARCHBISHOPRIC, NOW ST. MARY’S 
ITALIAN CHURCH. REV. V. M. SCRAMUZZA, PASTOR. 



Hundred and Thirty-Four 







































































Renowned for the proficiency in 
of Perpetual Adoration in New Orleans and throughout ath^ t0n8UeS ’ the Convents 
the best educational institutions in the Gulf re-ion Th " t leni Louisiana are among 
Perpetual Adoration, which is situated at 2^21 Marais *1 ^ h ° USe ° f the Sisters o£ 

Academy, was founded in 1872 by Mother Augustin* ‘ ‘ S kn ° Wn aS St Agnes ’ 

from the mother house of the order at Beliemagny France sJ T 6 ” ^ emiSrated 
supervision over the four other convents of th* ? bt ' Agnes ’ Academy has 

Miss. The institutions are conducted on a“ d at Pa8Cag ° u£a . 
care is given the health of the young women l l educational science and special 

regarded of the greatest importance, and if pupils areTllThev StUdent ®- Their health ls 
one of the Sisters. The hours of recreation arp ‘ are constantl y attended by 

neither mind nor body suffer frl^^^ 

mote the health and happiness of the children. English and pi h ? Pr °' 

excellent instructors, and the course of study comprises all the branchestourtM t? 
academies. The. institution is chartered and is empowered to“ ‘ “ del ees" and” 
diplomas. The presen, head of the Convents Perpetual Adoration is Mother CoTombe 
a most excellent and scholarly Mother, and at St. Agnes' Academy aione last session 
there were 70 pupils. At all the other convents there was an excellent attendance The 
chiec constantly kept betore the pupils' minds is the adornment oi the intellect with 
knowledge and the training of the heart to virue. Habits of order, cleanliness and 
courtesy are insisted upon, and the pupils are never permitted to go beyond the reach of 
a watchful but materna superintendent, whose vigilance secures the preservation S 
morals and the cheerful observance of the rules of the institution. No influence is 
exercised over the religious belief of the pupils, yet, for the sake of order all are at times 
required to assist in Divine worship. Beside St. Agnes’ Academy, the convents are at 


ST. AGNES’ ACADEMY, 2321 MARAIS STREET. 


Oubre Post Office, St. Janies Parish; Pascagoula, by the sea; at Crowley, La.; at No. 515 
St. Maurice Avenue, in New Orleans, and at Breaux Bridge, La. The convent at Pasca¬ 
goula is a delightfully situated school; has ideal bathing facilities, and is swept by the 
healthful breezes of the Gulf. All the convents are under the jurisdiction of the same 
community a.d charges are alike at all. Pupils may be transferred without charge from 
one to the other for causes of health or other reasons at the request of parents or legal 
guardians, and no expense is attached to the journey. The convent at St. Maurice 
Avenue, in New Orleans, was established in 1900, and is a modern and thoroughly fire¬ 
proof building. It is in the most beautiful section of the Third District and has the 
combined advantages of the city and the country. The Sisters of Perpetual Adoration 
also conduct a splendid parochial school for boys and girls at Gretna, and all information 
concerning this and other schools under the supervision of the community of Perpetual 
Adoration here may be had by communicating with Mother Colombe, at St. Agnes’ 
Academy, 2321 Marais Street. The Gretna school has a boarding department for little 
boys from the ages of four to twelve years, known as the Boarding School of the Infant 
Jesus. This is but two squares from the Southern Pacific station, four blocks from the 
Texas & Pacific depot and six from the Jackson Avenue ferry. The school opens the 
first Monday in September, and is a three-story building, spacious, well ventilated and 
surrounded by well-shaded playgrounds. Everything is done to promote the health and 
happiness of the boys, and the hours of play and study are so arranged that the children 
have the maximum of study without interfering with their physical well-being and 
development. The courses of study are preparatory to any grammar school or will fit 
the student for a college or other academy. Parents who have little boys too young to 
be sent to academies or colleges will do well to send them to this splendid institution, 
where they will have the assurance of the best possible training to develop into useful 
citizens free from the taint of moral turptitude or bad habits. 


Infant Jesus College 
Gretna, La. 


INFANT JESUS COLLEGE, GRETNA, LA. 


One Hundred and Thirty-Five 






















































‘•HOUSE OF SEVEN GABLES.” 

Rectory of St. Theresa’s Church. Built 1915. Rev. Leander M. Roth, Rector. 

St Theresa’s Church was built in 1848 on ground donated to Archbishop Blanc in 1880. 


Rev. Father L. J. Kavanaugh 

The Parish of Our Lady of Lourdes was founded by his Excellency most Reverend 
p. L. Sapell" D D° in 1905 and Reverend I.. .1. Havanas*, the present racnmbent. 
appointed the first Rector. 

A well attended church and a nourishing school, 
the parish bids fair to rank in a few years among 
the foremost in the city. 

I ittle by little Father Kavanagh's plan for a 
group of parochial buildings, including the church, 
are being realized, which will not only add to the 
beauty of Napoleon Avenue but contribute in no 
small' measure to the progress of the city in that 
section. 

Besides his duties as rector of the parish, Father 
Kavanagh is also the Superintendent of the Paro¬ 
chial Schools of the Archdiocese of New Orleans, 
a position inaugurated with the system by His 
Grace the Most Reverend Archbishop James H. 

Blenk, S. M. D. D. 

Marked progress has been made in the Parochial 
Schools since the organization, showing a constant 
increase in the number of children in attendance 
and the continued erection of newer and more 
commodious buildings. 

The work of the organization has attracted the 
attention of school authorities from other parts, 
and many features hitherto thought impossible are 
found in existence here in New Orleans giving the 
most effective results. 



Academy of the Holy Angels 

ACaUCIll} Academy of the Holy Angels of New 

-aeses mstss 

Ste n ene?|y of the SistW° at tie time "henjumerou^ State™* 

among the Catholic academies of th ® ®°u”tiy eac h contributed much to the 

of boys and girls have been its graduates, ^nd q Mananites Order 

honor and glory of their native city. Mary’s Boys Orphanage. In 18.il 

came to New Orleans in 1849, taking charge of the St. W parigh of Le Mans , France, 
a larger colony of Sisters came from ie i tj rsu ii ne Convent, and in 1856, by dint of 
and founded an industrial s ; oo ll ^, h s U1 for girls which adjoins the present 
superhuman effort, they built the large» als() established schools and convents 

convent in Rampart Street. In now pave other chartered schools at Houma, 

at Plaquemine and Opelousas, and t • Eunice, Arnaudville, m Louisiana, and 

Franklin. Lake Charles, Morgan City, Jeni , S h ’ ave charge of the St. Peter’s Parochial 
at. Ocean Springs, in Mississippi. y orphan Asylum and the Girls’ Asylum in 

School, St. Mary’s School, St. Mary s ®°f s ^ ^ ted February 2, 1866, and given power 
North Rampart Street. The academy was amp le recreation grounds, excellent 

»£££££&%£«£ of'suldents^and^thtfeducational <iepar.me„t is exception- 
ally thorough and comprehensive. 


St. Joseph’s Church 


St. Joseph’s Church, situated in New 
Orleans, is noted as being the second 
largest church in the United States. It 
is of Gothic-Romanesque architecture, 225 
feet deep and 150 feet high, being capable 
of accommodating 2,000 people. The in¬ 
terior embellishments are equal to the 
finest in any church in America. Niches 
with statues 25 feet high are among the 
exterior ornaments. Magnificent stained 
glass windows have been erected in lov¬ 
ing memory. Some of them have cost as 
much as $1,600.00 complete. There have 
recently been completed at Munich five 
new windows, costing $1,600 each, which 
cannot be shipped on account of the war. 
Two gems of art are the oil paintings on 
linoleum fastened over the two side al¬ 
tars, namely: “Annunciation” over the 
Blessed Virgin Mary’s altar, and “Death 
of St. Joseph” over his own altar. These 
pitcures, like the large windows, are liv¬ 
ing sermons; they catch the eye from 
every part of the church and tell their 
own beautiful story. A magnificent altar 
has lately been erected at a cost of 
$20,000.00, together with a beautiful oil 
painting costing $2,500.00. 

The present pastor, Rev. Thomas Weldon, is among the most active of the New 
Orleans clergy in the propagation of Catholic Societies. It is due, in a large measure, to 
him that the Holy Name Societies have swelled their numbers considerably in the last 
several years. 




Hundred and Thirty-Six 























RKW FATHER J. FRANCIS PRI 


M 


to learn the 
However, when 


Very Reverend J. Francis Prin, Rector of Mater Do,orosa Church in Carrollton 

was born in Trier, Germany, April 3, 1866. After a nrimarv ’ 

„ , „ . er d primai y education in his native citv 

Father Prim was sent to Nancy, France, to complete his education and 

French language, which was supposed necessary for his future vocation, 
years after, he felt the inspiration to 
the priesthood, Father Prim went to 
Austria for certain preparatory studies, 
finishing his philosophical studies at 
St. Nicholas and his theological studies 
at the American College, University of 
Lovain, Belgium. 

Being ordained to the priesthood in 
1893, Father Prim came to the United 
States in 1893, and was appointed As¬ 
sistant at St. Mary’s Archbishopric and 
Secretary to the then Archbishop 
Jansens, filling the last named position 
up to the time of the death of that be¬ 
loved prelate. 

When Archbishop Chapelle took 
charge of the diocese of New Orleans, 
one of the first appointments was the 
selection of Father Prim as Chancellor 
of the diocese. This was on February 
24, 1898. Subsequently Father Prim 
was appointed Rector of St. Mary’s 
Church, in Carrollton. His was not an 
easy task at the time of his appoint 
ment, and it is entirely due to his ef¬ 
forts that his people have the present 
beautiful Mater Dolorosa Church, 

School and Presbytery, on Carrollton Avenue, among the best appointed in the City oi 
New Orleans. 

Although his church and school buildings are pretty much indebted, seldom, if 
ever, you hear an appleal made by him to the public. He believes in woik lathei than 
relying on help coming from others. He is a man of unusual personality and is held in 
high regard by everyone whose good fortune it is to know him and the work that he has 
accomplished in New Orleans. 


8 $ 




another more recent improvement, and it is said that others are contemplated soon, on 
account of the great demand for the excellent facilities of the hospital. 

Ranking with the famous Charity Hospital, a State institution, in Tulane Avenue, 
which is also under the control, as far as the nursing is concerned, of the Sisters of 
St. Vincent de Paul, the Hotel Dieu has long been considered one of the leading hospitals 
of the United States. Its service is unequalled, the attention of the competent corps of 
graduate and student nurses being supervised at all times by the noble women of the 
charitable order. Its staff of physicians and surgeons has always been rated as the best 
in the South, and comprises some of the most skillful specialists and operating experts 
to be found anywhere in this country. Throughout Louisiana and the Gulf States 
Hotel Dieu has become known as a hospital of efficient service and painstaking care to 
its inmates, and this good name is spreading through the nations of Latin America 
Numbers of sick and afflicted from Central America and the West Indies, as well as 
from Mexico, have come to the Hotel Dieu for treatment, and have gone away well 
satisfied, to tell their friends of the wonderfully skillful nursing at the Hotel Dieu and 
what it accomplished for them. This is especially the case in tropical diseases and 
fevers, in which nursing and attention is half the battle, and numerous fast friends have 
been made for Hotel Dieu by the cures thus effected. They are particularly well pleased 
with the good food and service and the kindness and sympathy shown by the noble 
Sisters with the sick and afflicted. In cases of difficult operations, many of which come 
from the sawmills and industrial plants of Louisiana and Mississippi, the facilities of the 
Hotel Dieu have have been shown to be remarkably efficient, and are believed to have 
saved many lives through promptness and skill of the operating surgeons and nurses. 


l lie Hotel Dieu 


Few hospitals of the South are as favorably known as the Hotel Dieu of New 
Orleans, situated in Tulane Avenue and occupying the square between Prieur and South 
Johnson Streets. The Hotel Dieu is one of the oldest hospitals of the South, having been 
established by the Sisters of St. Vincent de Paul in ante-bellum times, and its present 
building, a substantial four-story structure, w r as erected in the early '90s. To it have 
been added at various times wings extending back to the rear of the square, so that now 
the instiution covers the entire block. Its most recent addition is the Joseph M. 
Burguieres' Home for Incurables, which faces the Johnson Street side of the building, 
forming an imposing wing. A modern home for nurses on the South Prieur side is 


One Hundred and Thirty-Seven 



























Continued from Page 133 

reachers and Pupils. On the south 
it offers the students unsurpassed 


URSULINE COLLEGE AND ACADEMY 

provided with everything that can be a help to 

■ s a vast campus t 

in the open air. 
accordance with the most 
medical authorities 
furnished with everyth 


are p 

side of the buildings stretches 
opportunities for wholesome exercise 
The Infirmary is constructed in 
lations and is approved by the most eminent 
lated from the rest of the buildings and is f". 
a perfect Sanitarium. 

Competent Infirmarians are in charge 
sick students entrusted to them the most devi 
illness, the physician is called and parents or 
Private apartments have been arranged 
desire them. These rooms are suited for one or 
modern appliances for the health and comfc 
cousins are permitted in the same room, 
according to their location. Bach student if 
room. Students are not permitted to visit om 
The Academy is divided into two Depar 
thirteen years of age, unless in the High Sch 
Students over thirteen years of age, in the 
entirely separate, having its own sleeping ai 
grounds. 


■ Ill 


SACRED HEART CHURCH AND SCHOOL. REV. J. J. O’ROURKE, C. S. C., RECTOR 


ST. ANN’S CHURCH 


One of the oldest and best known of the Cahtolic Churches of New Orleans is 
St. Ann’s, on St. Philip Street, between North Roman and North Prieur. It was built of 
brick in 1853, of Gothic design, and was later on materially enlarged and beautified. The 
church is well known to the Catholics of both city and State through the shrine of 
St. Ann, which occupies the entire left side of the nave. This altar is a beautiful speci¬ 
men of Gothic art, finished in white and gold, and illumined by electricity; it is flanked 
by statues of angels bearing candelabra in which burn continuously the so-called “Lamps 
of St. Ann.” 


During the Novena, which occurs from July 17 to July 26 of each year, thousands 
of Catholics from all parts of the city throng the church, which then becomes a place of 
pilgrimage as the celebrated Shrine of St. Anne de Baupre in Canada. Many are the 
favors received through the intercession of St. Ann, as the records of the church will 
show. 


The present rector, Rev. Francis Badeaux, has in one year spent $10,000.00 in 
improving and beautifying the church and rectory, and in the equipment of a free parish 
school, which now has an enrollment of several hundred pupils. 


St. Louis Cathedral 


REV. F. RACINE, PASTOR 


One Hundred and Thirty-Eight 



































St. Francis DeSales Church 

REV. WILLIAM J. HEFFERNAN. 

Among the Catholic clergy of New Orleans and Louisiana no man is more highly 
respected, no more greatly beloved than the Rev. Father William J Heffernan the rector 
cf St Francis de Sales Parish. The St. Francis de Sales Chirch is at the cornerof 
. econd and South Franklin Streets, and its rector has been the leading spirit in his 
clistuct in all sorts of civic and uplift work. Father Heffernan has been in charge of the 
parish for several years, during which time he has gained* the esteem and regard of 
every resident of his section of whatever sect or creed. All respect him as a man and 
a citizen, and there is no more loyal or devoted believer in New Orleans than Father 
Heffernan. During his ministry in New Orleans he has demonstrated a broad spirit of 
Christian charity towards the infirm, the needy and afflicted without regard to religious 
belief. This has won him the devotion of his people and everyone with whom his work 
has brought him into contact. In times of stress and emergency Father Heffernan has 
been the first to come forward and offer his services. He was of invaluable assistance 
to the city officers during epidemics, and through his wise counsel succeeded in con¬ 
vincing his parishioners of the wisdom of carrying out the wishes of the authorities in 
every particular in the sanitary improvements found necessary to eradicate disease and 
render New Orleans the most healthy city in America. 


The Redemptorists Churches 

More than seventy years ago the Fathers of the Congregation of the Most Holy 
Redeemer, usually called the Redemptorists, came to New Orleans and began their 
spiritual ministry in the Fourth District, which was then a suburb, known as the 
Faubourg Lafayette. Their first charge was a large body of German Catholic immigrants 
who had recently settled there, for whose accommodation they at once began the erection 
of a small frame church. Soon after it was found necessary to build a similar church 
near by for the English-speaking Catholics of the neighborhood, who were mostly Irish 


VERRINA HIGH SCHOOL, ST. STEPHEN’S PARISH. 

One of the special features of St. Stephen’s Parish, of which priests and people are 
proud, is its schools. Besides the Parochial Schools, there are St. Stephen’s High School 
for Young Ladies and the Verrina High School for Boys and Young Men. 

The Sisters of Charity have charge of the Parochial Schools for Girls and for Bovs 
up to and including the Sixth Grade, and of the Young Ladies’ High. 

The Brothers of Mary teach the Verrina High School, which meets the needs not 
only St. Stephen’s but of all the other parishes in this part of the city. The Verrina 
was founded September, 1915, and it has taken already a prominent place among the 
High Schools of the city. 


ants ' A ^ ew y ears later these small buildings being no longer able to accommo- 

the ® 10win S congregations, and a third church being required for the French people 

li a . lf i7nn 0 aU , r f’ M 1 ® fathers courageously began the great task of erecting three 

to thA flm sub ® tantial brick churches, which remain to this day beautiful monuments 

sniriH.il iia nd s ® ner0Slt Y of the people and to the zeal and artistic taste of the their 

hniU fnr ?, d ™ 8 ’ N , otre Dame Chur ch, on Jackson Avenue, the smallest of the three, was 

snpairWo ™ nc f sp e akin g congregation; St. Alplionsus, the largest, for the English- 

hiantv Mary s ’ a little smalIer than St. Alphonsus but equal to it in interior 
neauty, tor the Germans. 

ami provlde Catholic education for the children, separate school buildings for boys 
f, w e re erected near the churches, in which successive generations of the little 
u-himL • .ck have been instructed in grammar, high school and commercial courses, 
PPr !J Q ^ el y lnS . y r T ellgious and moral training, which is essential to the formation of 
rnuan character. Last year’s enrollment of pupils was a little less than 1,900. 
Poiirm,,e Reciemptorist parishes embrace a territory thirteen blocks square, bounded by 
mnltiv r Carondelet;, Seventh Streets and the river. The people of this district are 
nnn,.ioti 1 f hC f-’ i ^ nd a hou se-to-house census, taken in 1916, listed a total Catholic 
fn P ofv 1 a a ht - tl , e over 13 ’ 000 - Twelve priests minister to their spiritual wants, and 
n. aIt °. rd the Parishioners every facility to attend church services, celebrate twelve 
™ a88 ® 8 ® very Sunday morning and eight on week days. The Sunday masses follow 
°T®. f nother almost uninterruptedly from 5 o’clock till 12. The two earliest masses. 

”® n ar ® °y e r by 6 - have an average attendance of 1,500. Thus, at an early hour, when 
cA 0 ®,, ot the . ir townsmen are still in the land of dreams, this great number, Sunday after 
~ y ’ ev mce their strong Catholic faith by cheerfully sacrificing their early morning 
iest to lender to God the homage of their worship. 

. . father Mahony, the present rector of the Redemptorist churches, and four if his 
assistant priests are natives of these parishes and graduates of the schools. Many 
i eiigious and no fewer than forty priestly vocations have been fostered here. 


One Hundred and Thirty-Nine 

































REV. WM. J. RYAN, 
Pastor of St. Michael’s 


river. Rev. M. Sheehan was the first pastor 
of this church. The official records of St. 
Michael’s show the first marriage on 
December 22nd, 1869, and the first bap¬ 
tism December 30th, of the same year. 
Rev. M. Sheehan officiating on both occa¬ 
sions. 

The second pastor of St. Michael’s par¬ 
ish was Rev. P. G. Tobin; the last official 
record of his administration is given 
under date of December 7th, 1873. 


ST. MICHAEL’S PAROCHIAL SCHOOL. 


CHURCH, RECTORY AND GROUNDS OF THE HOLY NAME OF MARY CHURCH, 

ALGIERS. LOUISIANA. 


Sr. Michael’s Church 

On the 8th day of May, 1869, St. Michael's Church 
was dedicated by the Most Rev. W. J. Perclie, 
Archbishop of New Orleans. The original limits 
of the parish were from Felicity Road to Terp¬ 
sichore Street and from the river to Carondelet 
Street. The present limits are Felicity to Camp, 
to Terpsichore to Annunciation, to Thalia, to the 


■ in the great cause of free Catholic 

olic School Board of New Michael’s was marked by splendid accom- 

education in New Orleans. His reign • 

Pl,8h To‘,h the church and presbytery eutaMtah.ng 

Catholic organizations sprang up under his d ree • monumen t of his zeal and piety, 
the free parochial school, leaving 1 who knew him, and after a labor of youthful 

He died January 27th, 1912 -beloved by.all who Kne^ that is seldom equalled 
years with a devotion to reUgum and relig u- 111 appointed on the 2nd of February, 
The present pastor, Rev. Will am J- £y an ’ 

1912, by the Most Reverend Archbishop , , ic organizations kept on flourishing. 

During Father Ryan s adnuni ar atory grades, making possible the use of 

He built an extra school )Ul dl, ' g t0 . t [ ti ' one(1 0 ff into classrooms. St. Michael’s Free 
the school hall again, which was Partition Michael’s School Association. 

School is increasing in attendance and is.kept up> W « been taught by Sisters of. 
Under Father Ryan’s administration, the Mens bcnooi nas 

M9rCy Oh the 8th ot May. 1919. S t. Michaels Church will celebrate l.e golden Jubilee. 

Church of the Holy Name of Mary 

When Archbishop Odin, in 1865. requested the Marist Fathers to take charge 01‘ the 

Father Denis was the first Marist pastor Algiers At time toe )ansh numoer 

some 4,000 Catholics. In 1868, during the course ot a mission, it waspa DaRv ■wrecked 
by a storm. Ground was immediately purchased tor a site about tlnee blocks tiom t 






On December 21st, 1873, Rev 
Thomas Heslin was appointed 
pastor. He was consecrated 
Bishop of Natchez June 18, 1889. 
Under his able administration 
the parish flourished, a new pa¬ 
rochial school was built and a 
more commodious presbytery se¬ 
cured. 

Rev. Michael Coughlan was 
the next incumbent of St. 
Michael’s. For fourteen years 
the parish progressed under his 
genial administration. The many 
statues in the church are souve 
nirs of his pastorate. He died 
in April, 1903, to the great grief 
of his parishioners. 

The next pastor, Rev. Richard 
Power, was appointed on the 5th 
of May, 1903, by the late lament¬ 
ed Archbishop Chapelle. Father 
Power was secretary of the Cath- 


One Hundred and Forty 





















One Hundred and Forty-One 


devoted friend of the colored race, Mother Katherine Drexel, purchased the buildings, 
the State offering the same at a great sacrifice. Mother Katherine, whose life and whose 
fortune, in its entirety, have been devoted to the work of the evangelization of the colored 
people of the Southland, at once began efforts to resuscitate the old Southern as a place of 
education. The colored people of New Orleans manifested their sincere appreciation of 
Mother Katherine’s gift at that time, and when, in the fall of 1916, the doors were once 
again opened for the education of the colored children of the city a registration approxi¬ 
mating 500 was recorded. 

The faculty of the new institution is made up of the devoted Sisters of the Blessed 
Sacrament, a congregation of ladies founded some thirty years ago by Mother Katherine 
for the education and evangelization of the colored and Indian races. These Sisters, 
whose consecrated lives of self-sacrifice, and whose erudition and thorough training as 
teachers merit unstinted praise, have already won the esteem and love of the colored 
people of the community, and, although Xaxier University is but one year and a half in 
existence, its standing has already been well established, having received the unsolicited 
commendation of many distinguished educators. 

Children are received from the seventh grade to the last grade of High School. 
There is also associated with the University, departments in domestic science, sewing 
and mechanical arts. 


NEW COURTHOUSE. 


river, and in this location the church stands to-day The ne , 

structure of the thirteenth century style, was erected . ^ hurch > a beautiful Gothic 
Father Belanger, S. M„ dedicated in May 1871- 1871 through the efforts of 

Larkin, S. M„ in 1904, and finally consecrated’by Most embellishe <i by Father 
Archbishop of New Orleans, during the pastorate of Father Lar^^ x/ 161 *’ S ’ M ” 
was under the regime of Father Blenk, S M that tt Ldlkln > s - M„ in 1910. It 
planned and constructed. Another building that adorns the “ agnificent Presbytery was 
Hall, erected by Father Roman. The parochial schoo ^? UrCh gr ° Unds is St Ma >' y 's 
and girls, is conducted by the Sisters Mariannes* of attendance °t 600 boys 

leadership of Sister Mary Xavier, turn out pupils whn 1 X Cr ° SS> who - undei ' the 
department of endeavor open to the intelligent and cultured ^ banner -bearers in every 
For fifteen years Father Larkin has been pastor of the ° r Woman ' 
in which he was ordained thirty-two years ago It wn* e n Holy Name of Mary Church, 
trancepts were completed and the interior beantifniiv tvl thr ° ugh bis efforts that the 
paintings representing scenes from Se life of* he messed v-°® d ^ decorated with oil 
who have been most renowned for their devotion her ° f many Saints 

cent white marble and onyx altars in the sanctuary als f ° P laced three magnifi- 

the same material, richly carved and considered the richest ^ m «. Un i° n rail ot ’ 

1910 he paid off the entire debt of the church and had a „ and fin f s t in the South. In 
jubilee celebration. No one worked harder for Father\ arkinhfthi? dUr t ing bis silver 
than the Hon. Martin Behrman, Mayor of New Orleans and n ,H c T h gl „ eat undert aking 

o£ Mary Church. No one could he prouder of the^cCeMharthe neonle o, he ., H , 0ly Name 
non-Catholics pointing to it with pardonable pride q pon people of Algiers, even 

white steeple of the church and the church itself stand out against the'Sk™* la® 
noblest and richest specimen of Christian architecture in the Southland. ^ P ' haps the 


XAVIER UNIVERSITY 

Xavier University occupies the site of the old Southern University, that famous 
school for colored children, which first received State, and, later, both State and National 
endowments. Some four years ago it was thought advisable by the authorities in charge 
to transfer the site of the Southern’s activities to Scotland Heights, near Baton Rouge, 
La., where better facilities, it was said, were offered, particularly for agricultural devel¬ 
opment and training. 

The buildings of the old Southern, on Magazine and Soniat Streets, were gradually 
showing the effects of neglect and inoccupancy. Talk at the time was widespread that 
the property would be procured for real estates interests, when that distinguished and 


Xavier University. New Orleans, La. 





































INDEX 


rage. 

Alabama & Vicksburg Railway Company. 60 

Alexander, L. F. & Co. 76 

Allis-Chalmers Mfg. Co. 106 

American Brewing Company. Ill 

American Creosote Company. 93 

American-La France Fire Engine Company. 103 

American Sugar Refining Company. 99 

Armbruster, C. J. 78 

Associated Branch Pilots. 64 

Bacher Brothers. 81 

Badeaux, Rev. Francis. 138 

Bailey, Hon. Jas. J. 117 

Bakewell, Rev. A. Gordon. 121 

Ball, Wm. P. 13 

Baumbach, R. H. 92 

Behrman, Hon. Martin.. 5-6-7 

Bishop Edell Machine and Electric Works, Inc.. 112 

Bluefields Fruit and Steamship Company. 63 

Board of Health. 29-30 

Bobet Bros. 91 

Bogalusa. 85 

Bond, H. W. & Bro. 

Brasco’s Restaurant. 73 

Breaux, Hon. J. A. 11‘ 

Brockmeier, Rev. F. C. I' 1 '* 

Building Permits. ° 4 

Buja, Al. J. 42t j 

Bultmann & Son. 78 

Byrnes, Wm. H., Jr. 424 

Cabrera, Emanuel E., President. 126 

Canal Bridges. 34 

Capdevielle, Hon. Paul. 146 

Caro, Louis A. 428 

Carvalho, L. D. 428 

Castel, W. J. 70 

Christie, E. A.-.. 15 

City Finances. 33 

City Hall. 4 

City Views. 42 5 

Charbonnet, J. A. 423 

Chaves, Santiago. 428 

Chinese As a Race. 424 

Clement, Alfred H. & Co. 65 


Page. 

Coleman, John .. 44 

Columbia Brewing Company. . . .— 4 4,1 

Consumers Brewing Company ... . 444 

Consumers Electric Light and Power Company . 444 

Cotton Warehouse . 5,4 

Crescent City Machine and Manufacturing Company— 91 

Cuyamel Fruit Company. 62 

Dart, Wm. Kernan. 448 

De La Vergne, Col. H... . 424 

Delta Lumber Company .. 89 

Department of Labor-- 34 

DeWaele, Leon . 428 

Dietzen, Eugene, Co. . . . 92 

Dilzell, W. A. . . .. 92 

Dillon, John . 422 

Douglas, W. H. ”6 

Downman, R. H..—. 90 

Dunbar-Dukate Company. 442 

Earl, Geo. (!. . *6 

Elks’ Home.* . 96 

Elmer Candy Company, Inc- 442 

Erath, Chas. E . 422 

Eureka Fire Hose Company__ _ — 103 

Farwell, Charles A. . 70 

Farrnbacher Dry Goods Company-- 114 

Favret, Lionel . 92 

Perrier, Geo. 44 

Feitel, Dan. W., Bag Company, Ltd.. 109 

Foster, Milling, Saal & Milling . 122 

Freeman, Judge Thos. J. 122 

Galatoire Restaurant..__ 74 

Geren, (). P__ 46 

Gest, G. M. 90 

Glenny, E. J.. 8 

Glover, Geo. J . 95 

Godchaux, Leon, Company, Ltd.. 109 

Gould, Mrs. Martha J. 114 

Grace, W. R., & Co. 63 

Great Southern Lumber Company . 85 

Grunewald Hotel. 73 

Guatemala.126-127 

Gwinn, J. M . 36 

Hardee, Wm. J. . 15 


.-r.. T - r Page. 

Ul«* 

Harvey, Scene at . 81 

Heffernan, Rev. W. J. 139 

Held, A . 76 

Hibernia Bank and Trust Company . 81 

Holmes, D. H., Co., Ltd .. 77 

Holy Angels, Academy of 136 

Holy Cross College . . . 131 

Holy Name of Mary, Church of the... 140 

Hotel Dion . 137 

House of Seven Gables . 136 

Huger, W. E . 68 

Hufft, Rudolph. 15 

Hyams, R. P., Coal Company . . 80 

Illinois Central Railroad Company. 59 

International Distilling Company, Ltd . 113 

Istrouma Hotel. 114 

Jackson Brewing Company ..— . 110 

Jackson, Stonewall.... . 76 

Jahncke, Fritz, Inc. 93 

Jefferson Construction Company . 87 

Jefferson Distilling and Denaturing Company . 113 

Johnson Iron Works . 92 

Jurgens, George Burton . 120 

Kausler, Geo. S. . ... 69 

Kavanaugh, Rev. C. J. 69 

Kearny, J. Watts & Sons . 88 

Kerr Steamship Company ... . 62 

Kerr, Major Frank M . 121 

King Stave Company . 94 

Knop, Louis . 120 

Lafayette Hotel . 73 

Lafayette Insurance Company . 70 

Lafaye, E. E.. 3 

Lane Cotton Mills ... 107 

Larkin, Rev. Father . 140 

Leake, Hunter C . 121 

LeBourgeois & Bush, Inc. 76 

Ledbetter, Dr. B. A. 122 

Lehon, Dan S., Agency . 74 

Lover* & Steele . 78 

Lewis, Col. Thos. J . 118 

Long, Geo . 17 

Liverpool & London & Globe Insurance Company. 69 



































































































































INDEX 



Louisiana Abstract Title and Guarantee Company.. 
Louisville & Nashville Railroad Company..... 

Louisiana State Rice Milling Company . 

Loyola University..... 

McCarthy, R.. Jr.. ... 

McChesney, T. S . 

Main Pumping Station__ 

Maginnis Cotton Mills. ..... 

Manion, Martin H------ 

Marrero, L. H----- 

Marx, A., & Sons.... . 

Matthews, C. S...... 

Mendes, A., & Co... 

Mente & Co ......... 

Merchants Coffee Company, Ltd. . 

Metairie Cemetery Association... 

Metairie Ridge Nursery Company, Ltd. . 

Mexican Import and Export Corporation__ 

Mexican Navigation Company.... .. 

Mexico. 

Meyers, John B.. . 

Milliken & Farwell.. . 

Milner, P. M. 

Monroe, Hon. Frank A _____ _ 

Monroe, J. Blanc... . 

Mooney, Frank T. . .. 

Moore, Judge I. I). .. 

Moore, C. Bennette.. .. . 

Monteleone Hotel.. . 

Morton Salt Company.. 

Mortgage Securities Company- - - 

Mount Carmel Academy.—-- - 

Municipal Grain Elevator .. 

Myles Salt Company .....- . 

National Brewing Company. . 

National Sash and Door Company . 

New Courthouse .-.-.-. 

New Orleans Dry Dock and Shipbuilding Company.. 
New Orleans Furniture Manufacturing Company. .. 
New Orleans & Great Northern Railroad Company 


Page. 

. 71 

..54-55 
. 102 
... 130 
... 92 

... 40 

... 23 

101 
... 120 
119 
... 109 
... 69 

... 69 

... 98 

... 109 
... 124 
... 80 
... 65 

... 64 

... 128 
... 118 
..." 70 
119 
117 
... 118 
... 17 

13 
123 
73 

... 108 
... 71 

... 132 
.... 48 

.... 100 
.... 110 
... 94 

.... 141 
... 63 

.... 108 
.... 57 


New Orleans Harbor . 

New Orleans Lakeshore Land Company 
New Orleans ...- 


45-6-7-8-9-50-1-2 

. 71 

_10-12-14 


New Orleans Public Schools . 36-7-8-9-40-1-2-3 

New Orleans Railway and Light Company. 61 

New Orleans Sewerage and Drainage. .16-18-20-22 

New System of Accounting 33 

New Orleans Underwriters’ Agency_ 68 

Newman, Harold W. 9 

O'Connor Company, Ltd. mjs 

O’Keefe, A. J . ^3 

O’Reilly, Dr. W. T. 30 

Olsen, Ole K... .. 95 

Orleans Metal Bed Company, Ltd..... 112 

Orpheum Circuit. 82 

Otis Manufacturing Company_____ 88 

Patterson, C. T., & Co., Ltd ... 106 

Peabody, D. D...... ..... 114 

Pelican Ice Company_ ____ 113 

Penick & Ford_ 102 

Perpetual Adoration, Convent.. 135 

Peters, Henry____ _ ___ 74 

Picheloup, M., Jr . 92 


Preface... 

Prim, Rev. J. B . 

Prim, Rev. J. F.. . 

Public Belt Railroad____ 

Pujol, Louis. 

Public Tree Planting____ 

Racine, Rev. Father____ 

Rasch, Leo . 

Redemptorist Fathers. . 

Reynolds, Hampton. 

Reynolds, Jas. W .—.-. 

Ricks, A. G. 

Robin, Dr. W. H.. . 

Rooney, M .-. 

Roth, Rev. L. M. 

Revere Rubber Company . 

Ryan, Rev. Wm. J. 

Sacred Heart Academy . 

St. Ann’s Church .... . 

St. Mary’s Italian Church and School 

Schmidt & Zeigler, Ltd. 

Schwartz Bros. & Co., Ltd.. . 

Rolf-Seeberg Ship Chandlery Company 
Seguin, G. M.. . . 


. 132 

. 137 

24-5-6-7-8 

17 

. 32 

. 138 

.. 74 

139 

. 95 

.. 17 

. 8 

. 21 

. 11 

_ 136 

. 100 

_ 140 

_ 138 

. 138 

.. 134 

. 80 

. 81 

. 78 

.... 128 


Seven-Eleven Auto Service . 

Sewerage and Water Board Building . 

Shirer Casket Company . 

Smith, Archie M . 

Sins, M. C., & Co... . 

Solari, A. M. & J., Ltd.. 

Soniat, Leonce M . 

Southern Pacific Lines .-. 

Southern Railway System . 

Stafford, E. M. . 

Stone, Sam, Jr.. .. 

St. Charles Hotel .- 

St. Francis de Sales Church. . 

St. Joseph Church...— 

St. Louis Cathedral . . 

St. Michael’s Church and School . 

St. Stephen’s Parish.——. 

Standard Brewing Company . . 

Standard Export Lumber Company 

Standard Oil Company.. .. . 

Strauss Bascule Bridge Company . 

Street Paving. . 

Thompson, J. W.- .-. 

Thompson, W. B . 

Trans-Mississippi Terminal Railroad Company 

Tulane University. . 

Tupper, Allen . 

Turnbull, J. F. . 

United Fruit Company . 

Ursuline College and Academy . 

Vales, Alberto .-.-. 

Vincent, Rev. Wm. P . 

Verrina School. . 

Wang, Hans M., & Co . 

Weiblen, A., & Co. . 

Weiss, Sol. .-. 

Werlein, Philip.- . 

West End Lakeshore Park . 

White, Fernand J.-.- . 

Whitney Supply Company, Ltd . 

Woodward, Wight & Co., Ltd. 

Xavier University... .-.-. 

Zimmermann, Jacob. . 


Page. 

... 78 

... 19 
... 108 
... 121 
... 63 

... 74 

... 119 
... 60 
... 56 

... 117 
... 9 

... 72 

... 139 
... 136 
... 138 
... 140 
... 139 
... Ill 
... 84 

...104-5 
.... 86 
.... 34 

.... 87 

.... 45 

.... 58 

.... 44 

.... 88 
.... 71 

.... 63 

.... 133 

. 78 

. 134 

. 139 

. 74 

. 112 

. 123 

. 79 

. ...30-31 

. 13 

. 112 

. 75 

. 141 

...... 94 






































































































































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